Heart Disease Death Rates in Low Versus High Land Elevation Counties in the U.S

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Previous research on land elevation and cancer death rates in the U.S. revealed lower cancer death rates in higher elevations. The present study further tests the possible effect of land elevation on a diffident health outcome, namely, heart disease death rates. U.S. counties not overlapping in their land elevations according to their lowest and highest elevation points were identified. Using an ecological design, heart disease death rates for two races (black and white) corresponding to lower elevation counties were compared to heart disease death rates in higher land elevation counties using the two-sample t-test and effect size statistics. Death rates in higher land elevation counties for both races were lower compared to the death rates in lower land elevation counties (p < 0.001) with large effect sizes (of > 0.70). Since this is an observational study, no causal inference is claimed, and further research is indicated to verify these findings. PMID:26674102

Elevational characteristics of the archaeal community in full-scale activated sludge wastewater treatment plants at a 3,660-meter elevational scale.

PubMed

Niu, Lihua; Zhang, Xue; Li, Yi; Wang, Peifang; Zhang, Wenlong; Wang, Chao; Wang, Qing

2017-07-01

Due to the important roles of archaea in wastewater treatment processes, archaeal communities have been studied extensively in various anaerobic reactors, but the knowledge of archaeal communities in full-scale activated sludge wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) remains quite poor. In this study, 454-pyrosequencing was for the first time employed to investigate archaeal communities from 20 full-scale activated sludge WWTPs distributed at a 3,660-meter elevational scale in China. Results showed that archaeal communities from WWTPs were dominated by Methanosarcinales (84.6%). A core archaeal population (94.5%) composed of Methanosaeta, Methanosarcina, Methanogenium and Methanobrevibacter was shared among WWTPs. The elevational pattern of archaeal communities was observed in WWTPs, with an elevational threshold associated with archaeal community richness and structures at approximately 1,500 meters above sea level (masl). A declining trend in community richness with increasing elevation was observed at higher elevations, whereas no trend was presented at lower elevations. Spearman correlation analysis indicated that the archaeal community richness at higher elevations was associated with more environmental variables than that at lower elevations. Redundancy analysis indicated that wastewater variables were the dominant contributors to the variation of community structures at higher elevations, followed by operational variables and elevation.

Elevation trends and shrink-swell response of wetland soils to flooding and drying

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cahoon, Donald R.; Perez, Brian C.; Segura, Bradley D.; Lynch, James C.

2011-01-01

Given the potential for a projected acceleration in sea-level rise to impact wetland sustainability over the next century, a better understanding is needed of climate-related drivers that influence the processes controlling wetland elevation. Changes in local hydrology and groundwater conditions can cause short-term perturbations to marsh elevation trends through shrink—swell of marsh soils. To better understand the magnitude of these perturbations and their impacts on marsh elevation trends, we measured vertical accretion and elevation dynamics in microtidal marshes in Texas and Louisiana during and after the extreme drought conditions that existed there from 1998 to 2000. In a Louisiana marsh, elevation was controlled by subsurface hydrologic fluxes occurring below the root zone but above the 4 m depth (i.e., the base of the surface elevation table benchmark) that were related to regional drought and local meteorological conditions, with marsh elevation tracking water level variations closely. In Texas, a rapid decline in marsh elevation was related to severe drought conditions, which lowered local groundwater levels. Unfragmented marshes experienced smaller water level drawdowns and more rapid marsh elevation recovery than fragmented marshes. It appears that extended drawdowns lead to increased substrate consolidation making it less resilient to respond to future favorable conditions. Overall, changes in water storage lead to rapid and large short-term impacts on marsh elevation that are as much as five times greater than the long-term elevation trend, indicating the importance of long-term, high-resolution elevation data sets to understand the prolonged effects of water deficits on marsh elevation change.

Support for the elevational Rapoport's rule among seed plants in Nepal depends on biogeographical affinities and boundary effects.

PubMed

Feng, Jianmeng; Hu, Xiaokang; Wang, Jie; Wang, Yanmei

2016-10-01

As one of the most important hypotheses on biogeographical distribution, Rapoport's rule has attracted attention around the world. However, it is unclear whether the applicability of the elevational Rapoport's Rule differs between organisms from different biogeographical regions. We used Stevens' method, which uses species diversity and the averaged range sizes of all species within each (100 m) elevational band to explore diversity-elevation, range-elevation, and diversity-range relationships. We compared support for the elevational Rapoport's rule between tropical and temperate species of seed plants in Nepal. Neither tropical nor temperate species supported the predictions of the elevational Rapoport's rule along the elevation gradient of 100-6,000 m a.s.l. for any of the studied relationships. However, along the smaller 1,000-5,000 m a.s.l. gradient (4,300 m a.s.l. for range-elevation relationships) which is thought to be less influenced by boundary effects, we observed consistent support for the rule by tropical species, although temperate species did not show consistent support. The degree of support for the elevational Rapoport's rule may not only be influenced by hard boundary effects, but also by the biogeographical affinities of the focal taxa. With ongoing global warming and increasing variability of temperature in high-elevation regions, tropical taxa may shift upward into higher elevations and expand their elevational ranges, causing the loss of temperate taxa diversity. Relevant studies on the elevational Rapoport's rule with regard to biogeographical affinities may be a promising avenue to further our understanding of this rule.

Generation of a precise DEM by interactive synthesis of multi-temporal elevation datasets: a case study of Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jawak, Shridhar D.; Luis, Alvarinho J.

2016-05-01

Digital elevation model (DEM) is indispensable for analysis such as topographic feature extraction, ice sheet melting, slope stability analysis, landscape analysis and so on. Such analysis requires a highly accurate DEM. Available DEMs of Antarctic region compiled by using radar altimetry and the Antarctic digital database indicate elevation variations of up to hundreds of meters, which necessitates the generation of local improved DEM. An improved DEM of the Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica has been generated by synergistically fusing satellite-derived laser altimetry data from Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS), Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project (RAMP) elevation data and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) global elevation data (GDEM). This is a characteristic attempt to generate a DEM of any part of Antarctica by fusing multiple elevation datasets, which is essential to model the ice elevation change and address the ice mass balance. We analyzed a suite of interpolation techniques for constructing a DEM from GLAS, RAMP and ASTER DEM-based point elevation datasets, in order to determine the level of confidence with which the interpolation techniques can generate a better interpolated continuous surface, and eventually improve the elevation accuracy of DEM from synergistically fused RAMP, GLAS and ASTER point elevation datasets. The DEM presented in this work has a vertical accuracy (≈ 23 m) better than RAMP DEM (≈ 57 m) and ASTER DEM (≈ 64 m) individually. The RAMP DEM and ASTER DEM elevations were corrected using differential GPS elevations as ground reference data, and the accuracy obtained after fusing multitemporal datasets is found to be improved than that of existing DEMs constructed by using RAMP or ASTER alone. This is our second attempt of fusing multitemporal, multisensory and multisource elevation data to generate a DEM of Antarctica, in order to address the ice elevation change and address the ice mass balance. Our approach focuses on the strengths of each elevation data source to produce an accurate elevation model.

Building C west elevation showing south elevation of Building B ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Building C west elevation showing south elevation of Building B (on left) and north elevation of Building D (on right). The Germantown Dyeworks complex and smoke stack appear in the background. View looking east - Hinckley Knitting Mills, Building C, 21-35 East Wister Street, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

1-Meter Digital Elevation Model specification

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arundel, Samantha T.; Archuleta, Christy-Ann M.; Phillips, Lori A.; Roche, Brittany L.; Constance, Eric W.

2015-10-21

In January 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey National Geospatial Technical Operations Center began producing the 1-Meter Digital Elevation Model data product. This new product was developed to provide high resolution bare-earth digital elevation models from light detection and ranging (lidar) elevation data and other elevation data collected over the conterminous United States (lower 48 States), Hawaii, and potentially Alaska and the U.S. territories. The 1-Meter Digital Elevation Model consists of hydroflattened, topographic bare-earth raster digital elevation models, with a 1-meter x 1-meter cell size, and is available in 10,000-meter x 10,000-meter square blocks with a 6-meter overlap. This report details the specifications required for the production of the 1-Meter Digital Elevation Model.

Ice elevations and surface change on the Malaspina Glacier, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sauber, J.; Molnia, B.; Carabajal, C.; Luthcke, S.; Muskett, R.

2005-01-01

Here we use Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat)-derived elevations and surface characteristics to investigate the Malaspina Glacier of southern Alaska. Although there is significant elevation variability between ICESat tracks on this glacier, we were able to discern general patterns in surface elevation change by using a regional digital elevation model (DEM) as a reference surface. Specifically, we report elevation differences between ICESat Laser 1-3 observations (February 2003 - November 2004) and a Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)-derived DEM from February 2000. Elevation decreases of up to 20-25 m over a 3-4 year time period were observed across the folded loop moraine on the southern portion of the Malaspina Glacier. Copyright 2005 by the American Geophysical Union.

Intelligent elevator management system using image processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Narayanan, H. Sai; Karunamurthy, Vignesh; Kumar, R. Barath

2015-03-01

In the modern era, the increase in the number of shopping malls and industrial building has led to an exponential increase in the usage of elevator systems. Thus there is an increased need for an effective control system to manage the elevator system. This paper is aimed at introducing an effective method to control the movement of the elevators by considering various cases where in the location of the person is found and the elevators are controlled based on various conditions like Load, proximity etc... This method continuously monitors the weight limit of each elevator while also making use of image processing to determine the number of persons waiting for an elevator in respective floors. Canny edge detection technique is used to find out the number of persons waiting for an elevator. Hence the algorithm takes a lot of cases into account and locates the correct elevator to service the respective persons waiting in different floors.

Elevational speciation in action? Restricted gene flow associated with adaptive divergence across an altitudinal gradient

USGS Publications Warehouse

Funk, W. C.; Murphy, M.A.; Hoke, K. L.; Muths, Erin L.; Amburgey, Staci M.; Lemmon, Emily M.; Lemmon, A. R.

2016-01-01

Evolutionary theory predicts that divergent selection pressures across elevational gradients could cause adaptive divergence and reproductive isolation in the process of ecological speciation. Although there is substantial evidence for adaptive divergence across elevation, there is less evidence that this restricts gene flow. Previous work in the boreal chorus frog (Pseudacris maculata) has demonstrated adaptive divergence in morphological, life history and physiological traits across an elevational gradient from approximately 1500–3000 m in the Colorado Front Range, USA. We tested whether this adaptive divergence is associated with restricted gene flow across elevation – as would be expected if incipient speciation were occurring – and, if so, whether behavioural isolation contributes to reproductive isolation. Our analysis of 12 microsatellite loci in 797 frogs from 53 populations revealed restricted gene flow across elevation, even after controlling for geographic distance and topography. Calls also varied significantly across elevation in dominant frequency, pulse number and pulse duration, which was partly, but not entirely, due to variation in body size and temperature across elevation. However, call variation did not result in strong behavioural isolation: in phonotaxis experiments, low-elevation females tended to prefer an average low-elevation call over a high-elevation call, and vice versa for high-elevation females, but this trend was not statistically significant. In summary, our results show that adaptive divergence across elevation restricts gene flow in P. maculata, but the mechanisms for this potential incipient speciation remain open.

Wood properties of Scots pines (Pinus sylvestris) grown at elevated temperature and carbon dioxide concentration.

PubMed

Kilpeläinen, Antti; Peltola, Heli; Ryyppö, Aija; Sauvala, Kari; Laitinen, Kaisa; Kellomäki, Seppo

2003-09-01

Impacts of elevated temperature and carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) on wood properties of 15-year-old Scots pines (Pinus sylvestris L.) grown under conditions of low nitrogen supply were investigated in open-top chambers. The treatments consisted of (i) ambient temperature and ambient [CO2] (AT+AC), (ii) ambient temperature and elevated [CO2] (AT+EC), (iii) elevated temperature and ambient [CO2] (ET+AC) and (iv) elevated temperature and elevated [CO2] (ET+EC). Wood properties analyzed for the years 1992-1994 included ring width, early- and latewood width and their proportions, intra-ring wood density (minimum, maximum and mean, as well as early- and latewood densities), mean fiber length and chemical composition of the wood (cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and acetone extractive concentration). Absolute radial growth over the 3-year period was 54% greater in AT+EC trees and 30 and 25% greater in ET+AC and ET+EC trees, respectively, than in AT+AC trees. Neither elevated temperature nor elevated [CO2] had a statistically significant effect on ring width, early- and latewood widths or their proportions. Both latewood density and maximum intra-ring density were increased by elevated [CO2], whereas fiber length was increased by elevated temperature. Hemicellulose concentration decreased and lignin concentration increased significantly in response to elevated temperature. There were no statistically significant interaction effects of elevated temperature and elevated [CO2] on the wood properties, except on earlywood density.

Contrasting Decadal-Scale Changes in Elevation and ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Northeastern US salt marshes face multiple co-stressors, including accelerating rates of relative sea level rise (RSLR), elevated nutrient inputs, and low sediment supplies. In order to evaluate how marsh surface elevations respond to such factors, we used surface elevation tables (SETs) and surface elevation pins to measure changes in marsh surface elevation in two eastern Long Island Sound salt marshes, Barn Island and Mamacoke marshes. We compare marsh elevation change at these two systems with recent rates of RSLR and find evidence of differences between the two sites; Barn Island is maintaining its historic rate of elevation gain (2.3 ± 0.24 mm year−1 from 2003 to 2013) and is no longer keeping pace with RSLR, while Mamacoke shows evidence of a recent increase in rates (4.2 ± 0.52 mm year−1 from 1994 to 2014) to maintain its elevation relative to sea level. In addition to data on short-term elevation responses at these marshes, both sites have unusually long and detailed data on historic vegetation species composition extending back more than half a century. Over this study period, vegetation patterns track elevation change relative to sea levels, with the Barn Island plant community shifting towards those plants that are found at lower elevations and the Mamacoke vegetation patterns showing little change in plant composition. We hypothesize that the apparent contrasting trend in marsh elevation at the sites is due to differences in sediment a

Interactive effects of CO2 and O3 on a ponderosa pine plant/litter/soil mesocosm.

PubMed

Olszyk, D M; Johnson, M G; Phillips, D L; Seidler, R J; Tingey, D T; Watrud, L S

2001-01-01

To study individual and combined impacts of two important atmospheric trace gases, CO2 and O3, on C and N cycling in forest ecosystems; a multi-year experiment using a small-scale ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Laws.) seedling/soil/litter system was initiated in April 1998. The experiment was conducted in outdoor, sun-lit chambers where aboveground and belowground ecological processes could be studied in detail. This paper describes the approach and methodology used, and presents preliminary data for the first two growing seasons. CO2 treatments were ambient and elevated (ambient + 280 ppm). O3 treatments were elevated (hourly averages to 159 ppb, cumulative exposure > 60 ppb O3, SUM 06 approximately 10.37 ppm h), and a low control level (nearly all hourly averages <40 ppb. SUM 06 approximately 0.07 ppm h). Significant (P < 0.05) individual and interactive effects occurred with elevated CO2 and elevated O3. Elevated CO2 increased needle-level net photosynthetic rates over both seasons. Following the first season, the highest photosynthetic rates were for trees which had previously received elevated O3 in addition to elevated CO2. Elevated CO2 increased seedling stem diameters, with the greatest increase at low O3. Elevated CO2 decreased current year needle % N in the summer. For 1-year-old needles measured in the fall there was a decrease in % N with elevated CO2 at low O3, but an increase in % N with elevated CO2 at elevated O3. Nitrogen fixation (measured by acetylene reduction) was low in ponderosa pine litter and there were no significant CO2 or O3 effects. Neither elevated CO2 nor elevated O3 affected standing root biomass or root length density. Elevated O3 decreased the % N in coarse-fine (1-2 mm diameter) but not in fine (< 1 mm diameter) roots. Both elevated CO2 and elevated O3 tended to increase the number of fungal colony forming units (CFUs) in the AC soil horizon, and elevated O3 tended to decrease bacterial CFUs in the C soil horizon. Thus, after two growing seasons we showed interactive effects of O3 and CO2 in combination, in addition to responses to CO2 or O3 alone for a ponderosa pine plant/litter/soil system.

Elevated CO2 enhances biological contributions to elevation change in coastal wetlands by offsetting stressors associated with sea-level rise

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cherry, J.A.; McKee, K.L.; Grace, J.B.

2009-01-01

1. Sea-level rise, one indirect consequence of increasing atmospheric CO2, poses a major challenge to long-term stability of coastal wetlands. An important question is whether direct effects of elevated CO 2 on the capacity of marsh plants to accrete organic material and to maintain surface elevations outweigh indirect negative effects of stressors associated with sea-level rise (salinity and flooding). 2. In this study, we used a mesocosm approach to examine potential direct and indirect effects of atmospheric CO2 concentration, salinity and flooding on elevation change in a brackish marsh community dominated by a C3 species, Schoenoplectus americanus, and a C4 grass, Spartina patens. This experimental design permitted identification of mechanisms and their role in controlling elevation change, and the development of models that can be tested in the field. 3. To test hypotheses related to CO2 and sea-level rise, we used conventional anova procedures in conjunction with structural equation modelling (SEM). SEM explained 78% of the variability in elevation change and showed the direct, positive effect of S. americanus production on elevation. The SEM indicated that C3 plant response was influenced by interactive effects between CO2 and salinity on plant growth, not a direct CO2 fertilization effect. Elevated CO2 ameliorated negative effects of salinity on S. americanus and enhanced biomass contribution to elevation. 4. The positive relationship between S. americanus production and elevation change can be explained by shoot-base expansion under elevated CO 2 conditions, which led to vertical soil displacement. While the response of this species may differ under other environmental conditions, shoot-base expansion and the general contribution of C3 plant production to elevation change may be an important mechanism contributing to soil expansion and elevation gain in other coastal wetlands. 5. Synthesis. Our results revealed previously unrecognized interactions and mechanisms contributing to marsh elevation change, including amelioration of salt stress by elevated CO2 and the importance of plant production and shoot-base expansion for elevation gain. Identification of biological processes contributing to elevation change is an important first step in developing comprehensive models that permit more accurate predictions of whether coastal marshes will persist with continued sea-level rise or become submerged. ?? 2008 The Authors.

Reproductive allocation in plants as affected by elevated carbon dioxide and other environmental changes: a synthesis using meta-analysis and graphical vector analysis.

PubMed

Wang, Xianzhong; Taub, Daniel R; Jablonski, Leanne M

2015-04-01

Reproduction is an important life history trait that strongly affects dynamics of plant populations. Although it has been well documented that elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere greatly enhances biomass production in plants, the overall effect of elevated CO2 on reproductive allocation (RA), i.e., the proportion of biomass allocated to reproductive structures, is little understood. We combined meta-analysis with graphical vector analysis to examine the overall effect of elevated CO2 on RA and how other environmental factors, such as low nutrients, drought and elevated atmospheric ozone (O3), interacted with elevated CO2 in affecting RA in herbaceous plants. Averaged across all species of different functional groups and environmental conditions, elevated CO2 had little effect on RA (-0.9%). RA in plants of different reproductive strategies and functional groups, however, differed in response to elevated CO2. For example, RA in iteroparous wild species decreased by 8%, while RA in iteroparous crops increased significantly (+14%) at elevated CO2. RA was unaffected by CO2 in plants grown with no stress or in low-nutrient soils. RA decreased at elevated CO2 and elevated O3, but increased in response to elevated CO2 in drought-stressed plants, suggesting that elevated CO2 could ameliorate the adverse effect of drought on crop production to some extent. Our results demonstrate that elevated CO2 and other global environmental changes have the potential to greatly alter plant community composition through differential effects on RA of different plant species and thus affect the dynamics of natural and agricultural ecosystems in the future.

The space station tethered elevator system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Loren A.

1989-01-01

The optimized conceptual engineering design of a space station tethered elevator is presented. The elevator is an unmanned mobile structure which operates on a ten kilometer tether spanning the distance between the Space Station and a tethered platform. Elevator capabilities include providing access to residual gravity levels, remote servicing, and transportation to any point along a tether. The potential uses, parameters, and evolution of the spacecraft design are discussed. Engineering development of the tethered elevator is the result of work conducted in the following areas: structural configurations; robotics, drive mechanisms; and power generation and transmission systems. The structural configuration of the elevator is presented. The structure supports, houses, and protects all systems on board the elevator. The implementation of robotics on board the elevator is discussed. Elevator robotics allow for the deployment, retrieval, and manipulation of tethered objects. Robotic manipulators also aid in hooking the elevator on a tether. Critical to the operation of the tethered elevator is the design of its drive mechanisms, which are discussed. Two drivers, located internal to the elevator, propel the vehicle along a tether. These modular components consist of endless toothed belts, shunt-wound motors, regenerative power braking, and computer controlled linear actuators. The designs of self-sufficient power generation and transmission systems are reviewed. Thorough research indicates all components of the elevator will operate under power provided by fuel cells. The fuel cell systems will power the vehicle at seven kilowatts continuously and twelve kilowatts maximally. A set of secondary fuel cells provides redundancy in the unlikely event of a primary system failure. Power storage exists in the form of Nickel-Hydrogen batteries capable of powering the elevator under maximum loads.

Creatine kinase elevation, lactacidemia, and metabolic myopathy in adult patients with diabetes mellitus.

PubMed

Frank, Marlies; Finsterer, Josef

2012-01-01

To determine the frequency of elevated creatine kinase (CK) levels among patients with diabetes mellitus and to determine how often elevated CK is attributable to primary myopathy. In this prospective study, we investigated how often CK, aspartate amino-transferase, alanine aminotransferase, and resting lactate were elevated among consecutive diabetic patients attending our clinic. Those with elevated CK values were offered a neurologic workup. Ninety-nine patients with diabetes mellitus, aged 19 to 87 years, were assessed between May 2008 and April 2010. Seven patients had type 1 diabetes and 92 patients had type 2 diabetes. CK, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and resting lactate were elevated in 19 of 99, 25 of 99, 22 of 99, and 24 of 98 patients, respectively. Eleven of 19 patients with increased CK were self-injecting insulin. Ten of 24 patients with elevated serum lactate took metformin. Seven of 19 patients with elevated CK consented to neurologic workup. Two of the 7 had elevated resting lactate. In all 7 patients, the findings from neurologic investigation were indicative of a metabolic defect and further diagnostic evaluation was recommended. In diabetic patients attending our clinic, elevated CK levels occur in one-fifth and lactacidemia occurs in one-quarter. Elevated CK levels are attributable to a primary metabolic myopathy in most cases. Elevated CK levels in the setting of diabetes mellitus require further neurologic evaluation.

49 CFR 213.59 - Elevation of curved track; runoff.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Elevation of curved track; runoff. 213.59 Section... track; runoff. (a) If a curve is elevated, the full elevation shall be provided throughout the curve, unless physical conditions do not permit. If elevation runoff occurs in a curve, the actual minimum...

75. Southeast elevation of Forest Hills station looking Northwest ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

75. Southeast elevation of Forest Hills station - looking Northwest from junction of Washington and Walk Hill Streets. At left is the beginning of Section F-7 the exposed steel portion of elevated structure leading to the Forest Hills storage yard (demolished in 1985). - Boston Elevated Railway, Elevated Mainline, Washington Street, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

76 FR 64038 - Airworthiness Directives; CPAC, Inc. Airplanes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-17

... airplane in the elevator spar area or that could have affected the elevator spar. (5) Type of operation... elevator spar for cracks and, if any crack is found, either replace with a serviceable elevator spar that is found free of cracks or repair/modify the elevator spar with an FAA-approved method. That AD also...

[Distribution characteristics of heavy metals along an elevation gradient of montane forest].

PubMed

Wan, Jia-rong; Nie, Ming; Zou, Qin; Hu, Shao-chang; Chen, Jia-kuan

2011-12-01

In the present paper, the concentrations of fourteen heavy metals (Fe, Al, Ti, Cu, Cr, Mn, V, Zn, Ni, Co, Pb, Se, Cd and As) were determined by ICP-AES and atomic absorption spectroscopy along an elevation gradient of montane forest. The results show that the elevation gradient had significant effects on the concentrations of Fe, Al, Ti, V, Pb and As. And the concentrations of Cu, Cr, Mn, Zn, Ni, Co, Se and Cd were not significantly affected by the elevation gradient. Because the studying area is red soil, the elevation gradient had significant effects on the concentrations of Fe, Al and Ti which are characteristic heavy metals of red soil, suggesting that the red soil at different elevations has different intensities of weathering desilication and bioaccumulation. Other heavy metals have different relationships with the elevation gradient, such as the concentrations of Cr, Zn and Cd were high at relatively high elevation and Pb and As were high at relatively low elevation. These results suggest that the different elevations of montane forest soils were polluted by differently types of heavy metals.

Traction sheave elevator, hoisting unit and machine space

DOEpatents

Hakala, Harri; Mustalahti, Jorma; Aulanko, Esko

2000-01-01

Traction sheave elevator consisting of an elevator car moving along elevator guide rails, a counterweight moving along counterweight guide rails, a set of hoisting ropes (3) on which the elevator car and counterweight are suspended, and a drive machine unit (6) driving a traction sheave (7) acting on the hoisting ropes (3) and placed in the elevator shaft. The drive machine unit (6) is of a flat construction. A wall of the elevator shaft is provided with a machine space with its open side facing towards the shaft, the essential parts of the drive machine unit (6) being placed in the space. The hoisting unit (9) of the traction sheave elevator consists of a substantially discoidal drive machine unit (6) and an instrument panel (8) mounted on the frame (20) of the hoisting unit.

Elevational Distribution and Conservation Biogeography of Phanaeine Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in Bolivia

PubMed Central

Herzog, Sebastian K.; Hamel-Leigue, A. Caroli; Larsen, Trond H.; Mann, Darren J.; Soria-Auza, Rodrigo W.; Gill, Bruce D.; Edmonds, W. D.; Spector, Sacha

2013-01-01

Insect macroecology and conservation biogeography studies are disproportionately scarce, especially in the Neotropics. Dung beetles are an ideal focal taxon for biodiversity research and conservation. Using distribution and body size data on the ecologically important Phanaeini, the best-known Neotropical dung beetle tribe, we determined elevational patterns of species richness, endemism, body size, and elevational range in Bolivia, specifically testing Bergmann’s and Rapoport’s rule. Richness of all 39 species and of 15 ecoregional endemics showed a hump-shaped pattern peaking at 400 m, but overall declined strongly with elevation up to 4000 m. The relationship between endemic and total species richness appeared to be curvilinear, providing only partial support for the null hypothesis that species-rich areas are more likely to be centers of endemism by chance alone. An elevational increase in the proportion of ecoregional endemics suggests that deterministic factors also appear to influence endemism in the Andes. When controlling for the effect of area using different species-area relationships, the statistically significant richness peak became more pronounced and shifted upslope to 750 m. Larger species did not have higher elevational mid-points, and mean body size decreased significantly with elevation, contradicting Bergmann’s rule. Rapoport’s rule was supported: species with higher elevational mid-points had broader elevational ranges, and mean elevational range increased significantly with elevation. The elevational decrease of phanaeine richness is in accordance with studies that demonstrated the combined influence of temperature and water availability on species diversity, but also is consistent with niche conservatism. For invertebrates, confirmation of Rapoport’s and refutation of Bergmann’s rule appear to be scale-invariant general patterns. Analyses of biogeographic patterns across elevational gradients can provide important insights for identifying conservation priorities. Phanaeines with narrow elevational ranges on isolated low-elevation mountains in eastern Bolivia are at greatest climate-change related extinction risk from range-shift gaps and mountaintop extinctions. PMID:23717678

Elevational distribution and conservation biogeography of phanaeine dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in Bolivia.

PubMed

Herzog, Sebastian K; Hamel-Leigue, A Caroli; Larsen, Trond H; Mann, Darren J; Soria-Auza, Rodrigo W; Gill, Bruce D; Edmonds, W D; Spector, Sacha

2013-01-01

Insect macroecology and conservation biogeography studies are disproportionately scarce, especially in the Neotropics. Dung beetles are an ideal focal taxon for biodiversity research and conservation. Using distribution and body size data on the ecologically important Phanaeini, the best-known Neotropical dung beetle tribe, we determined elevational patterns of species richness, endemism, body size, and elevational range in Bolivia, specifically testing Bergmann's and Rapoport's rule. Richness of all 39 species and of 15 ecoregional endemics showed a hump-shaped pattern peaking at 400 m, but overall declined strongly with elevation up to 4000 m. The relationship between endemic and total species richness appeared to be curvilinear, providing only partial support for the null hypothesis that species-rich areas are more likely to be centers of endemism by chance alone. An elevational increase in the proportion of ecoregional endemics suggests that deterministic factors also appear to influence endemism in the Andes. When controlling for the effect of area using different species-area relationships, the statistically significant richness peak became more pronounced and shifted upslope to 750 m. Larger species did not have higher elevational mid-points, and mean body size decreased significantly with elevation, contradicting Bergmann's rule. Rapoport's rule was supported: species with higher elevational mid-points had broader elevational ranges, and mean elevational range increased significantly with elevation. The elevational decrease of phanaeine richness is in accordance with studies that demonstrated the combined influence of temperature and water availability on species diversity, but also is consistent with niche conservatism. For invertebrates, confirmation of Rapoport's and refutation of Bergmann's rule appear to be scale-invariant general patterns. Analyses of biogeographic patterns across elevational gradients can provide important insights for identifying conservation priorities. Phanaeines with narrow elevational ranges on isolated low-elevation mountains in eastern Bolivia are at greatest climate-change related extinction risk from range-shift gaps and mountaintop extinctions.

Determinants of food resource assimilation by stream insects along a tropical elevation gradient.

PubMed

Atkinson, Carla L; Encalada, Andrea C; Rugenski, Amanda T; Thomas, Steve A; Landeira-Dabarca, Andrea; Poff, N LeRoy; Flecker, Alexander S

2018-04-26

Food resource availability varies along gradients of elevation where riparian vegetative cover exerts control on the relative availability of allochthonous and autochthonous resources in streams. Still, little is known about how elevation gradients can alter the availability and quality of resources and how stream food webs respond. We sampled habitat characteristics, stable isotope signatures (δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 2 Η) and the carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus composition of basal food resources and insects in 11 streams of similar size along an elevation gradient from 1260 to 4045 m on the northeastern slope of the Ecuadorian Andean-Amazon region. Algal-based (autochthonous) food resources primarily supported insects occurring at higher elevations, but at low elevations there was a shift to greater allochthony, corresponding with lower light availability and reduced epilithon resource abundance. Additionally, percent phosphorus (%P) of both autochthonous and allochthonous food resources and of body tissue for some abundant insect taxa (stonefly Anacroneuria and mayfly Andesiops) declined with increasing elevation, despite the greater autochthony at high elevation. Allochthonous food resources were always a lower quality food resource, as indicated by higher C:N, N:P, and lower %P, across elevation in comparison to autochthonous resources, but autochthonous resources had higher %P than allochthonous resources across all elevations and comprised a greater portion of high-elevation insect resource assimilation. Aquatic insects may be able to compensate for the lower quality of both resource types at high elevations through altered body stoichiometry, even though higher quality autochthonous-based foods are in high abundance at high elevations.

Rapid warming forces contrasting growth trends of subalpine fir ( Abies fabri ) at higher- and lower-elevations in the eastern Tibetan Plateau

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Wenzhi; Jia, Min; Wang, Genxu

Tree radial growth is expected to increase at higher elevations under climate warming, while lower elevation tree growth is expected to decline. However, numerous studies have found tree radial growth responds consistently to climate along elevational gradients. Here, we sampled five plots across the subalpine Abies fabri forest belt on Gongga Mountain in the eastern Tibetan Plateau to determine tree radial growth trends and responses to climate. Three commonly used detrending methods all consistently showed that tree radial growth at high elevation (> 3100 m) increased, while tree growth declined at the lower elevations (2700 m–2900 m) over the lastmore » three decades. Increasing late-growing season temperature positively (p < 0.05) correlated to tree radial growth at higher elevations, but the sign of this relationship reversed to become negative at lower elevations. Moving-window correlation analyses indicated the difference between high and low elevations response to temperature variation increased strongly with warming. Placing our result into the global context, 62% of 39 published studies found that trees along elevation gradients respond divergently to warming, and that these are located in warmer and wetter regions of the Earth. Notably, 28% of studies found non-significant responses to temperature at both high and low elevations. Our findings in the subalpine mountain forest in the eastern Tibetan Plateau were consistent with the majority of published datasets, and imply increasing temperature benefit for tree populations at higher elevation, while warming dampens growth at lower elevations.« less

To left of center is freight elevator used to move ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

To left of center is freight elevator used to move materials to the upper floors of the building. This elevator is also powered via the belts and drive shafts which operate the machine tools. Sign on elevator reads 'For Mr. Edison's Personal Use Only;' according to rumor, Edison was encouraged to use the elevator as he grew older, but refused. The elevator is designed for freight only. - Thomas A. Edison Laboratories, Building No. 5, Main Street & Lakeside Avenue, West Orange, Essex County, NJ

Influence of elevated carbon dioxide and temperature on belowground carbon allocation and enzyme activities in tropical flooded soil planted with rice.

PubMed

Bhattacharyya, P; Roy, K S; Neogi, S; Manna, M C; Adhya, T K; Rao, K S; Nayak, A K

2013-10-01

Changes in the soil labile carbon fractions and soil biochemical properties to elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) and temperature reflect the changes in the functional capacity of soil ecosystems. The belowground root system and root-derived carbon products are the key factors for the rhizospheric carbon dynamics under elevated CO2 condition. However, the relationship between interactive effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on belowground soil carbon accrual is not very clear. To address this issue, a field experiment was laid out to study the changes of carbon allocation in tropical rice soil (Aeric Endoaquept) under elevated CO2 and elevated CO2 + elevated temperature conditions in open top chambers (OTCs). There were significant increase of root biomass by 39 and 44 % under elevated CO2 and elevated CO2 + temperature compared to ambient condition, respectively. A significant increase (55 %) of total organic carbon in the root exudates under elevated CO2 + temperature was noticed. Carbon dioxide enrichment associated with elevated temperature significantly increased soil labile carbon, microbial biomass carbon, and activities of carbon-transforming enzyme like β-glucosidase. Highly significant correlations were noticed among the different soil enzymes and soil labile carbon fractions.

Transcriptional profiling reveals elevated CO2 and elevated O3 alter resistance of soybean (Glycine max) to Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica).

PubMed

Casteel, Clare L; O'Neill, Bridget F; Zavala, Jorge A; Bilgin, Damla D; Berenbaum, May R; Delucia, Evan H

2008-04-01

The accumulation of CO2 and O3 in the troposphere alters phytochemistry which in turn influences the interactions between plants and insects. Using microarray analysis of field-grown soybean (Glycine max), we found that the number of transcripts in the leaves affected by herbivory by Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) was greater when plants were grown under elevated CO2, elevated O3 and the combination of elevated CO2 plus elevated O3 than when grown in ambient atmosphere. The effect of herbivory on transcription diminished strongly with time (<1% of genes were affected by herbivory after 3 weeks), and elevated CO2 interacted more strongly with herbivory than elevated O3. The majority of transcripts affected by elevated O3 were related to antioxidant metabolism. Constitutive levels and the induction by herbivory of key transcripts associated with defence and hormone signalling were down-regulated under elevated CO2; 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) synthase, lipoxygenase (LOX), allene oxide synthase (AOS), allene oxide cyclase (AOC), chalcone synthase (CHS), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and cysteine protease inhibitor (CystPI) were lower in abundance compared with levels under ambient conditions. By suppressing the ability to mount an effective defence, elevated CO2 may decrease resistance of soybean to herbivory.

4. South Elevation Columbia Island Abutment Four; South Elevation ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. South Elevation - Columbia Island Abutment Four; South Elevation - Washington Abutment One - Arlington Memorial Bridge, Spanning Potomac River between Lincoln Memorial & Arlington National Cemetery, Washington, District of Columbia, DC

View southeast, showing front elevation, side (west) elevation and ell. ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

View southeast, showing front elevation, side (west) elevation and ell. Outbuildings and field stretching to west and south - Conner Homestead, Epping Road (State Route 101), Exeter, Rockingham County, NH

Refrigeration Plant, North Elevation, Second Floor Plan, East Elevation, Ground ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Refrigeration Plant, North Elevation, Second Floor Plan, East Elevation, Ground Floor Plan, Section A-A - Kennecott Copper Corporation, On Copper River & Northwestern Railroad, Kennicott, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, AK

Design of a powered elevator control system. [powered elevator system for modified C-8A aircraft for STOL operation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glende, W. L. B.

1974-01-01

The design, fabrication and flight testing of a powered elevator system for the Augmentor Wing Jet STOL Research Aircraft (AWJSRA or Mod C-8A) are discussed. The system replaces a manual spring tab elevator control system that was unsatisfactory in the STOL flight regime. Pitch control in the AWJSRA is by means of a single elevator control surface. The elevator is used for both maneuver and trim control as the stabilizer is fixed. A fully powered, irreversible flight control system powered by dual hydraulic sources was designed. The existing control columns and single mechanical cable system of the AWJSRA have been retained as has been the basic elevator surface, except that the elevator spring tab is modified into a geared balance tab. The control surface is directly actuated by a dual tandem moving body actuator. Control signals are transmitted from the elevator aft quadrant to the actuator by a linkage system that includes a limited authority series servo actuator.

Nitric oxide enhances development of lateral roots in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) under elevated carbon dioxide.

PubMed

Wang, Huan; Xiao, Wendan; Niu, Yaofang; Jin, Chongwei; Chai, Rushan; Tang, Caixian; Zhang, Yongsong

2013-01-01

Elevated carbon dioxide (CO₂) has been shown to enhance the growth and development of plants, especially of roots. Amongst them, lateral roots play an important role in nutrient uptake, and thus alleviate the nutrient limitation to plant growth under elevated CO₂. This paper examined the mechanism underlying CO₂ elevation-induced lateral root formation in tomato. The endogenous nitric oxide (NO) in roots was detected by the specific probe 4-amino-5-methylamino-2',7'-difluorofluorescein diacetate (DAF-FM DA). We suggest that CO₂ elevation-induced NO accumulation was important for lateral root formation. Elevated CO₂ significantly increased the activity of nitric oxide synthase in roots, but not nitrate reductase activity. Moreover, the pharmacological evidence showed that nitric oxide synthase rather than nitrate reductase was responsible for CO₂ elevation-induced NO accumulation. Elevated CO₂ enhanced the activity of nitric oxide synthase and promoted production of NO, which was involved in lateral root formation in tomato under elevated CO₂.

Internalized elevation perception of simple stimuli in cochlear-implant and normal-hearing listeners

PubMed Central

Thakkar, Tanvi; Goupell, Matthew J.

2014-01-01

In normal-hearing (NH) listeners, elevation perception is produced by the spectral cues imposed by the pinna, head, and torso. Elevation perception in cochlear-implant (CI) listeners appears to be non-existent; this may be a result of poorly encoded spectral cues. In this study, an analog of elevation perception was investigated by having 15 CI and 8 NH listeners report the intracranial location of spectrally simple signals (single-electrode or bandlimited acoustic stimuli, respectively) in both horizontal and vertical dimensions. Thirteen CI listeners and all of the NH listeners showed an association between place of stimulation (i.e., stimulus frequency) and perceived elevation, generally responding with higher elevations for more basal stimulation. This association persisted in the presence of a randomized temporal pitch, suggesting that listeners were not associating pitch with elevation. These data provide evidence that CI listeners might perceive changes in elevation if they were presented stimuli with sufficiently salient elevation cues. PMID:25096117

Feasibility of Shape-Memory Ni/Ti Alloy Wire Containing Tube Elevators for Transcrestal Detaching Maxillary Sinus Mucosa: Ex Vivo Study.

PubMed

Li, Yanfeng; Wang, Fuli; Hu, Pin; Fan, Jiadong; Han, Yishi; Liu, Bin; Liu, Tao; Yang, Chunhao; Gu, Xiangmin

2016-01-01

Osteotome sinus floor elevation is a less invasive approach to augment an insufficient alveolar bone at the posterior maxilla for dental implantation. However, this approach has some limitations due to the lack of sinus lift tools available for clinical use and the small transcrestal access to the maxillary sinus floor. We recently invented shape-memory Ni/Ti alloy wire containing tube elevators for transcrestal detaching maxillary sinus mucosa, and developed goat ex vivo models for direct visualizing the effectiveness of detaching sinus mucosa in real time during transcrestal maxillary sinus floor elevation. We evaluated our invented elevators, namely elevator 012 and elevator 014, for their effectiveness for transcrestal detaching maxillary sinus mucosa using the goat ex vivo models. We measured the length of sinus mucosa detached in mesial and distal directions or buccal and palatal directions, and the space volume created by detaching maxillary sinus mucosa in mesial, distal, buccal and palatal directions using the invented elevators. Elevator 012 had a shape-memory Ni/Ti alloy wire with a diameter of 0.012 inch, while elevator 014 had its shape-memory Ni/Ti alloy wire with a diameter of 0.014 inch. Elevator 012 could detach the goat maxillary sinus mucosa in the mesial or distal direction for 12.1±4.3 mm, while in the buccal or palatal direction for 12.5±6.7 mm. The elevator 014 could detach the goat maxillary sinus mucosa for 23.0±4.9 mm in the mesial or distal direction, and for 19.0±8.1 mm in the buccal or palatal direction. An average space volume of 1.7936±0.2079 ml was created after detaching the goat maxillay sinus mucosa in both mesial/distal direction and buccal/palatal direction using elevator 012; while the average space volume created using elevator 014 was 1.8764±0.2366 ml. Both two newly invented tube elevators could effectively detach the maxillary sinus mucosa on the goat ex vivo sinus models. Moreover, elevator 014 has advantages over the elevator 012 for the capability to detach sinus mucosa. © 2016 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.

5. VIEW OF SECOND ELEVATOR WITH WOODFRAME HEADHOUSE AND ASPHALTIC ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. VIEW OF SECOND ELEVATOR WITH WOOD-FRAME HEADHOUSE AND ASPHALTIC SIDING, LOOKING WEST. - Lockport DuPage Farmer's Elevator Company Grain Elevator, South of Romeoville Road, Lockport, Will County, IL

Mean Cancer Mortality Rates in Low Versus High Elevation Counties in Texas

PubMed Central

Hart, John

2010-01-01

There is controversy as to whether low levels of radiation (i.e., < 5 rem) pose a health risk. This brief inquiry compares archived cancer mortality data in counties having relatively low (0–250 feet above sea level), medium (500–1000 feet above sea level), and high (3000+ feet above sea level) elevations also having corresponding greater natural background levels of radiation respectively. Cancer mortality was found to be lowest in the high elevation counties (mean = 58.2) followed by low elevation counties (67.5) and then medium elevation counties (70.4). Statistically significant differences were found between low –high elevations (p = 0.003), and medium – high elevations (p = 0.010), but not between low and medium elevations (p = 0.5). More rigorous research, with an accounting of confounding variables, is indicated. PMID:21191484

Impact of a century of climate change on small-mammal communities in Yosemite National Park, USA.

PubMed

Moritz, Craig; Patton, James L; Conroy, Chris J; Parra, Juan L; White, Gary C; Beissinger, Steven R

2008-10-10

We provide a century-scale view of small-mammal responses to global warming, without confounding effects of land-use change, by repeating Grinnell's early-20th century survey across a 3000-meter-elevation gradient that spans Yosemite National Park, California, USA. Using occupancy modeling to control for variation in detectability, we show substantial ( approximately 500 meters on average) upward changes in elevational limits for half of 28 species monitored, consistent with the observed approximately 3 degrees C increase in minimum temperatures. Formerly low-elevation species expanded their ranges and high-elevation species contracted theirs, leading to changed community composition at mid- and high elevations. Elevational replacement among congeners changed because species' responses were idiosyncratic. Though some high-elevation species are threatened, protection of elevation gradients allows other species to respond via migration.

A Double-Deck Elevator Group Supervisory Control System with Destination Floor Guidance System Using Genetic Network Programming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Lu; Zhou, Jin; Mabu, Shingo; Hirasawa, Kotaro; Hu, Jinglu; Markon, Sandor

The Elevator Group Supervisory Control Systems (EGSCS) are the control systems that systematically manage three or more elevators in order to efficiently transport the passengers in buildings. Double-deck elevators, where two elevators are connected with each other, serve passengers at two consecutive floors simultaneously. Double-deck Elevator systems (DDES) become more complex in their behavior than conventional single-deck elevator systems (SDES). Recently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has been used in such complex systems. Genetic Network Programming (GNP), a graph-based evolutionary method, has been applied to EGSCS and its advantages are shown in some papers. GNP can obtain the strategy of a new hall call assignment to the optimal elevator when it performs crossover and mutation operations to judgment nodes and processing nodes. Meanwhile, Destination Floor Guidance System (DFGS) is installed in DDES, so that passengers can also input their destinations at elevator halls. In this paper, we have applied GNP to DDES and compared DFGS with normal systems. The waiting time and traveling time of DFGS are all improved because of getting more information from DFGS. The simulations showed the effectiveness of the double-deck elevators with DFGS in different building traffics.

Scots pine responses to elevated temperature and carbon dioxide concentration: growth and wood properties.

PubMed

Kilpeläinen, Antti; Peltola, Heli; Ryyppö, Aija; Kellomäki, Seppo

2005-01-01

Growth and wood properties of 20-year-old Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees were studied for 6 years in 16 closed chambers providing a factorial combination of two temperature regimes (ambient and elevated) and two carbon dioxide concentrations ([CO2]) (ambient and twice ambient). The elevation of temperature corresponded to the predicted effect at the site of a doubling in atmospheric [CO2]. Annual height and radial growth and wood properties were analyzed during 1997-2002. Physical wood properties analyzed included early- and latewood widths and their proportions, intra-ring wood densities, early- and latewood density and mean fiber length. Chemical wood properties analyzed included concentrations of acetone-soluble extractives, lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose. There were no significant treatment effects on height growth during the 6-year study. Elevated [CO2] increased ring width by 66 and 47% at ambient and elevated temperatures, respectively. At ambient [CO2], elevated temperature increased ring width by 19%. Increased ring width in response to elevated [CO2] resulted from increases in both early- and latewood width; however, there was no effect of the treatments on early- and latewood proportions. Mean wood density, earlywood density and fiber length increased in response to elevated temperature. The chemical composition of wood was affected by elevated [CO2], which reduced the cellulose concentration, and by elevated temperature, which reduced the concentration of acetone-soluble extractives. Thus, over the 6-year period, radial growth was significantly increased by elevated [CO2], and some wood properties were significantly affected by elevated temperature or elevated [CO2], or both, indicating that climate change may affect the material properties of wood.

Heat shock response and mammal adaptation to high elevation (hypoxia).

PubMed

Wang, Xiaolin; Xu, Cunshuan; Wang, Xiujie; Wang, Dongjie; Wang, Qingshang; Zhang, Baochen

2006-10-01

The mammal's high elevation (hypoxia) adaptation was studied by using the immunological and the molecular biological methods to understand the significance of Hsp (hypoxia) adaptation in the organic high elevation, through the mammal heat shock response. (1) From high elevation to low elevation (natural hypoxia): Western blot and conventional RT-PCR and real-time fluorescence quota PCR were adopted. Expression difference of heat shock protein of 70 (Hsp70) and natural expression of brain tissue of Hsp70 gene was determined in the cardiac muscle tissue among the different elevation mammals (yak). (2) From low elevation to high elevation (hypoxia induction): The mammals (domestic rabbits) from the low elevation were sent directly to the areas with different high elevations like 2300, 3300 and 5000 m above sea level to be raised for a period of 3 weeks before being slaughtered and the genetic inductive expression of the brain tissue of Hsp70 was determined with RT-PCR. The result indicated that all of the mammals at different elevations possessed their heat shock response gene. Hsp70 of the high elevation mammal rose abruptly under stress and might be induced to come into being by high elevation (hypoxia). The speedy synthesis of Hsp70 in the process of heat shock response is suitable to maintain the cells' normal physiological functions under stress. The Hsp70 has its threshold value. The altitude of 5000 m above sea level is the best condition for the heat shock response, and it starts to reduce when the altitude is over 6000 m above sea level. The Hsp70 production quantity and the cell hypoxia bearing capacity have their direct ratio.

Differential in surface elevation change across mangrove forests in the intertidal zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Haifeng; Wang, Wenqing; Ma, Wei; Wang, Mao

2018-07-01

A better understanding of surface elevation changes in different mangrove forests would improve our predictions of sea-level rise impacts, not only upon mangrove species distributions in the intertidal zone, but also on the functioning of these wetlands. Here, a two-year (2015-2017) dataset derived from 18 RSET-MH (rod surface elevation table-marker horizon) stations at Dongzhaigang Bay, Hainan, China, was analyzed to investigate how surface elevation changes differed across mangrove species zones. The current SET data indicated a rather high rate (9.6 mm y-1, on average) of surface elevation gain that was mostly consistent with that (8.1 mm y-1, on average) inferred from either the 137Cs or 210Pb dating of sediment cores. In addition, these surface elevation changes were sensitive to elevation in the intertidal zone and differed significantly between the two study sites (Sanjiang and Houpai). Mangrove species inhabiting the lower intertidal zone tended to experience greater surface elevation change at Sanjiang, which agrees with the general view that sedimentation and elevation gains are driven by elevation in the intertidal zone (i.e., greater when positioned lower in the intertidal profile). However, at Houpai, both surface elevation change and surface accretion showed the opposite trend (i.e., greater when positioned higher in the intertidal profile). This study's results indicate that the pattern of surface elevation changes across the intertidal profile maybe inconsistent due to intricate biophysical controls. Therefore, instead of using a constant rate, models should presume a topography that evolves at differing rates of surface elevation change in different species zones across the intertidal profile when predicting the impacts of sea-level rise on mangrove distributions.

Elevated Liver Enzymes

MedlinePlus

Symptoms Elevated liver enzymes By Mayo Clinic Staff Elevated liver enzymes may indicate inflammation or damage to cells in the liver. Inflamed or ... than normal amounts of certain chemicals, including liver enzymes, into the bloodstream, which can result in elevated ...

ST segment elevation in lead aVR: what to expect from this orphan?

PubMed

Iskandar, Said B; Fahrig, Stephen A

2008-12-01

Standard 12-lead electrocardiography is used to diagnose acute myocardial infarctions in patient presenting with ST elevation. The specificity of ST segment elevation for the corresponding area is more than 90 percent. It has been suggested that ST-segment elevation in lead aVR may indicate left main disease. We will present a patient who had an ST segment elevation in this lead. We will review the current data about this finding, as well as the significance of ST segment elevation in other leads.

1. COMPARISON OF PLANS, SHOWING KONGENSGADE 6 (see photograph VI50 ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. COMPARISON OF PLANS, SHOWING KONGENSGADE 6 (see photograph VI-50 50-2 for elevation), KONGENSGADE 8 (see photograph VI-50-3 for elevation), KONGENSGADE 9 (see photograph VI-50-3 for elevation), KONGENSGADE 17 (see photograph VI-50-5 for elevation), KONGENSGADE 56 (see photograph VI-50-8 for elevation), & KONGENSGADE 57 (see photograph VI-50-9 for elevation) - King Street Area Study, Kongensgade 5-18, 36, 37B, 51-58 (Houses), 5-18, 36-37B, 51-58 King Street, Frederiksted, St. Croix, VI

Geographic variability in elevation and topographic constraints on the distribution of native and nonnative trout in the Great Basin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Warren, Dana R.; Dunham, Jason B.; Hockman-Wert, David

2014-01-01

Understanding local and geographic factors influencing species distributions is a prerequisite for conservation planning. Our objective in this study was to model local and geographic variability in elevations occupied by native and nonnative trout in the northwestern Great Basin, USA. To this end, we analyzed a large existing data set of trout presence (5,156 observations) to evaluate two fundamental factors influencing occupied elevations: climate-related gradients in geography and local constraints imposed by topography. We applied quantile regression to model upstream and downstream distribution elevation limits for each trout species commonly found in the region (two native and two nonnative species). With these models in hand, we simulated an upstream shift in elevation limits of trout distributions to evaluate potential consequences of habitat loss. Downstream elevation limits were inversely associated with latitude, reflecting regional gradients in temperature. Upstream limits were positively related to maximum stream elevation as expected. Downstream elevation limits were constrained topographically by valley bottom elevations in northern streams but not in southern streams, where limits began well above valley bottoms. Elevation limits were similar among species. Upstream shifts in elevation limits for trout would lead to more habitat loss in the north than in the south, a result attributable to differences in topography. Because downstream distributions of trout in the north extend into valley bottoms with reduced topographic relief, trout in more northerly latitudes are more likely to experience habitat loss associated with an upstream shift in lower elevation limits. By applying quantile regression to relatively simple information (species presence, elevation, geography, topography), we were able to identify elevation limits for trout in the Great Basin and explore the effects of potential shifts in these limits that could occur in response to changing climate conditions that alter streams directly (e.g., through changes in temperature and precipitation) or indirectly (e.g., through changing water use).

Soils characterisation along ecological forest zones in the Eastern Himalayas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, Alois; Dhendup, Kuenzang; Bahadur Rai, Prem; Gratzer, Georg

2017-04-01

Elevational gradients are commonly used to characterise vegetation patterns and, to a lesser extent, also to describe soil development. Furthermore, interactions between vegetation cover and soil characteristics are repeatedly observed. Combining information on soil development and easily to distinguish forest zones along elevational gradients, creates an added value for forest management decisions especially in less studied mountain regions. For this purpose, soil profiles along elevational gradients in the temperate conifer forests of Western and Central Bhutan, ranging from 2600-4000m asl were investigated. Thereby, 82 soil profiles were recorded and classified according to the World Reference Base for Soil Resources. Based on 19 representative profiles, genetic horizons were sampled and analysed. We aim to provide fundamental information on forest soil characteristics along these elevational transects. The results are presented with regard to ecological forest zones. The elevational distribution of the reference soil groups showed distinct distribution ranges for most of the soils. Cambisols were the most frequently recorded reference soil group with 58% of the sampled profiles, followed by Podzols in higher elevations, and Stagnosols, at intermediate elevations. Fluvisols occurred only at the lower end of the elevational transects and Phaeozems only at drier site conditions in the cool conifer dry forest zone. The humus layer thickness differs between forest zones and show a shift towards increased organic layer (O-layer) with increasing elevation. The reduced biomass productivity with increasing elevation and subsequently lower litter input compensates for the slow decomposition rates. The increasing O-layer thickness is an indicator of restrained intermixing of organic and mineral components by soil organisms at higher elevation. Overall, the soil types and soil characteristics along the elevational gradient showed a continuous and consistent change, instead of abrupt changes. We interpret these as manifestations of changes of temperature and precipitation with elevation which also drives forest zonation in these least anthropogenically influenced forest ecosystems. The elevational distribution of forest zones is correlated with the distribution of soil types and thus also reflects soil characteristics.

The effects of elevated CO2 and eutrophication on surface elevation gain in a European salt marsh.

PubMed

Reef, Ruth; Spencer, Tom; Mӧller, Iris; Lovelock, Catherine E; Christie, Elizabeth K; McIvor, Anna L; Evans, Ben R; Tempest, James A

2017-02-01

Salt marshes can play a vital role in mitigating the effects of global environmental change by dissipating incident storm wave energy and, through accretion, tracking increasing water depths consequent upon sea level rise. Atmospheric CO 2 concentrations and nutrient availability are two key variables that can affect the biological processes that contribute to marsh surface elevation gain. We measured the effects of CO 2 concentrations and nutrient availability on surface elevation change in intact mixed-species blocks of UK salt marsh using six open-top chambers receiving CO 2 -enriched (800 ppm) or ambient (400 ppm) air. We found more rapid surface elevation gain in elevated CO 2 conditions: an average increase of 3.4 mm over the growing season relative to ambient CO 2 . Boosted regression analysis to determine the relative influence of different parameters on elevation change identified that a 10% reduction in microbial activity in elevated CO 2 -grown blocks had a positive influence on elevation. The biomass of Puccinellia maritima also had a positive influence on elevation, while other salt marsh species (e.g. Suaeda maritima) had no influence or a negative impact on elevation. Reduced rates of water use by the vegetation in the high CO 2 treatment could be contributing to elevation gain, either directly through reduced soil shrinkage or indirectly by decreasing microbial respiration rates due to lower redox levels in the soil. Eutrophication did not influence elevation change in either CO 2 treatment despite doubling aboveground biomass. The role of belowground processes (transpiration, root growth and decomposition) in the vertical adjustment of European salt marshes, which are primarily minerogenic in composition, could increase as atmospheric CO 2 concentrations rise and should be considered in future wetland models for the region. Elevated CO 2 conditions could enhance resilience in vulnerable systems such as those with low mineral sediment supply or where migration upwards within the tidal frame is constrained. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Elevation of Morning Blood Pressure in Sodium Resistant Subjects by High Sodium Diet

PubMed Central

Lim, Chi-Yeon; Shin, Sung-Joon; Oh, Sang-Woo; Park, Yong-Soon; Kim, Jong-Wook; Park, Hye-Kyoung; Kim, Cho-il; Park, Cheol-Young; Kim, Sun-Woong

2013-01-01

The present study evaluated the response of blood pressure (BP) by dietary sodium in sodium resistant (SR) subjects. One hundred one subjects (mean age, 46.0 yr; 31 hypertensives) were admitted and given low sodium-dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) diet (LSD, 100 mM NaCl/day) for 7 days and high sodium-DASH diet (HSD, 300 mM NaCl/day) for the following 7 days. On the last day of each diet, 24 hr ambulatory BP was measured. Morning systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) were elevated after HSD in all subjects (P < 0.01), but daytime SBP and DBP were not changed (P > 0.05). In hypertensive subjects, morning DBP elevation was greater than daytime DBP elevation (P = 0.036), although both DBPs were significantly elevated after HSD. The augmented elevation of morning DBP in hypertensive subjects was contributed by the absolute elevation of morning DBP (P = 0.032) and relative elevation to daytime DBP (P = 0.005) in sodium resistant (SR) subjects, but not by sodium sensitive subjects. Although there was no absolute elevation, SR subjects with normotension showed a relative elevation of morning SBP compared to daytime SBP change after HSD (P = 0.009). The present study demonstrates an absolute and relative elevation of morning BP in SR subjects by HSD. PMID:23580363

2. View of Mainline elevated structure, parallel to Washington Street, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. View of Mainline elevated structure, parallel to Washington Street, crossing over the Massachusetts Turnpike and the B&A R.R. tracks - looking North. - Boston Elevated Railway, Elevated Mainline, Washington Street, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

Is moral elevation an approach-oriented emotion?

PubMed Central

Van de Vyver, Julie; Abrams, Dominic

2017-01-01

Abstract Two studies were designed to test whether moral elevation should be conceptualized as an approach-oriented emotion. The studies examined the relationship between moral elevation and the behavioral activation and inhibition systems. Study 1 (N = 80) showed that individual differences in moral elevation were associated with individual differences in behavioral activation but not inhibition. Study 2 (N = 78) showed that an elevation-inducing video promoted equally high levels of approach orientation as an anger-inducing video and significantly higher levels of approach orientation than a control video. Furthermore, the elevation-inducing stimulus (vs. the control condition) significantly promoted prosocial motivation and this effect was sequentially mediated by feelings of moral elevation followed by an approach-oriented state. Overall the results show unambiguous support for the proposal that moral elevation is an approach-oriented emotion. Applied and theoretical implications are discussed. PMID:28191027

Comparing trapezius muscle activity in the different planes of shoulder elevation

PubMed Central

Ishigaki, Tomonobu; Ishida, Tomoya; Samukawa, Mina; Saito, Hiroshi; Hirokawa, Motoki; Ezawa, Yuya; Sugawara, Makoto; Tohyama, Harukazu; Yamanaka, Masanori

2015-01-01

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the upper, middle, and lower trapezius muscles’ activity in the different planes of shoulder elevation. [Subjects] Twenty male subjects volunteered for this study. [Methods] Surface electromyographic (EMG) activity for each of the three regions of the trapezius muscles in the three different planes of elevation were collected while the participants maintained 30, 60, and 90 degrees of elevation in each plane. The EMG data were normalized with maximum voluntary isometric contraction (%MVIC), and compared among the planes at each angle of elevation. [Results] There were significantly different muscle activities among the elevation planes at each angle. [Conclusion] This study found that the three regions of the trapezius muscles changed their activity depending on the planes of shoulder elevation. These changes in the trapezius muscles could induce appropriate scapular motion to face the glenoid cavity in the correct directions in different planes of shoulder elevation. PMID:26157248

Comparing trapezius muscle activity in the different planes of shoulder elevation.

PubMed

Ishigaki, Tomonobu; Ishida, Tomoya; Samukawa, Mina; Saito, Hiroshi; Hirokawa, Motoki; Ezawa, Yuya; Sugawara, Makoto; Tohyama, Harukazu; Yamanaka, Masanori

2015-05-01

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the upper, middle, and lower trapezius muscles' activity in the different planes of shoulder elevation. [Subjects] Twenty male subjects volunteered for this study. [Methods] Surface electromyographic (EMG) activity for each of the three regions of the trapezius muscles in the three different planes of elevation were collected while the participants maintained 30, 60, and 90 degrees of elevation in each plane. The EMG data were normalized with maximum voluntary isometric contraction (%MVIC), and compared among the planes at each angle of elevation. [Results] There were significantly different muscle activities among the elevation planes at each angle. [Conclusion] This study found that the three regions of the trapezius muscles changed their activity depending on the planes of shoulder elevation. These changes in the trapezius muscles could induce appropriate scapular motion to face the glenoid cavity in the correct directions in different planes of shoulder elevation.

Plant and microbial responses to nitrogen and phosphorus addition across an elevational gradient in subarctic tundra.

PubMed

Sundqvist, Maja K; Liu, Zhanfeng; Giesler, Reiner; Wardle, David A

2014-07-01

Temperature and nutrients are major limiting factors in subarctic tundra. Experimental manipulation of nutrient availability along elevational gradients (and thus temperature) can improve our understanding of ecological responses to climate change. However, no study to date has explored impacts of nutrient addition along a tundra elevational gradient, or across contrasting vegetation types along any elevational gradient. We set up a full factorial nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization experiment in each of two vegetation types (heath and meadow) at 500 m, 800 m, and 1000 m elevation in northern Swedish tundra. We predicted that plant and microbial communities in heath or at lower elevations would be more responsive to N addition while communities in meadow or at higher elevations would be more responsive to P addition, and that fertilizer effects would vary more with elevation for the heath than for the meadow. Although our results provided little support for these predictions, the relationship between nutrient limitation and elevation differed between vegetation types. Most plant and microbial properties were responsive to N and/or P fertilization, but responses often varied with elevation and/or vegetation type. For instance, vegetation density significantly increased with N + P fertilization relative to the other fertilizer treatments, and this increase was greatest at the lowest elevation for the heath but at the highest elevation for the meadow. Arbuscular mycorrhizae decreased with P fertilization at 500 m for the meadow, but with all fertilizer treatments in both vegetation types at 800 m. Fungal to bacterial ratios were enhanced by N+ P fertilization for the two highest elevations in the meadow only. Additionally, microbial responses to fertilization were primarily direct rather than indirect via plant responses, pointing to a decoupled response of plant and microbial communities to nutrient addition and elevation. Because our study shows how two community types differ in their responses to fertilization and elevation, and because the temperature range across this gradient is approximately 3 degrees C, our study is informative about how nutrient limitation in tundra may be influenced by temperature shifts that are comparable to those expected under climate change during this century.

Patterns of reptile and amphibian species richness along elevational gradients in Mt. Kenya

PubMed Central

MALONZA, Patrick Kinyatta

2015-01-01

Faunal species richness is traditionally assumed to decrease with increasing elevation and decreasing primary productivity. Species richness is reported to peak at mid-elevation. This survey examines the herpetofaunal diversity and distribution in Mt. Kenya (central Kenya) by testing the hypothesis that changes in species richness with elevation relate to elevation-dependent changes in climate. Sampling along transects from an elevation of approximately 1 700 m in Chogoria forest block (wind-ward side) and approximately 2 600 m in Sirimon block (rain shadow zone) upwards in March 2009. This starts from the forest to montane alpine zones. Sampling of reptiles and amphibians uses pitfall traps associated with drift fences, time-limited searches and visual encounter surveys. The results show that herpetofaunal richness differs among three vegetation zones along the elevation gradient. Chogoria has higher biodiversity than Sirimon. More species occur at low and middle elevations and few exist at high elevations. The trends are consistent with expected optimum water and energy variables. The lower alpine montane zone has high species richness but low diversity due to dominance of some high elevations species. Unambiguous data do not support a mid-domain effect (mid-elevation peak) because the observed trend better fits a model in which climatic variables (rainfall and temperature) control species richness, which indirectly measures productivity. It is important to continue protection of all indigenous forests, especially at low to mid elevations. These areas are vulnerable to human destruction yet are home to some endemic species. Firebreaks can limit the spread of the perennial wildfires, especially on the moorlands. PMID:26646571

Google Earth elevation data extraction and accuracy assessment for transportation applications

PubMed Central

Wang, Yinsong; Zou, Yajie; Henrickson, Kristian; Wang, Yinhai; Tang, Jinjun; Park, Byung-Jung

2017-01-01

Roadway elevation data is critical for a variety of transportation analyses. However, it has been challenging to obtain such data and most roadway GIS databases do not have them. This paper intends to address this need by proposing a method to extract roadway elevation data from Google Earth (GE) for transportation applications. A comprehensive accuracy assessment of the GE-extracted elevation data is conducted for the area of conterminous USA. The GE elevation data was compared with the ground truth data from nationwide GPS benchmarks and roadway monuments from six states in the conterminous USA. This study also compares the GE elevation data with the elevation raster data from the U.S. Geological Survey National Elevation Dataset (USGS NED), which is a widely used data source for extracting roadway elevation. Mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean squared error (RMSE) are used to assess the accuracy and the test results show MAE, RMSE and standard deviation of GE roadway elevation error are 1.32 meters, 2.27 meters and 2.27 meters, respectively. Finally, the proposed extraction method was implemented and validated for the following three scenarios: (1) extracting roadway elevation differentiating by directions, (2) multi-layered roadway recognition in freeway segment and (3) slope segmentation and grade calculation in freeway segment. The methodology validation results indicate that the proposed extraction method can locate the extracting route accurately, recognize multi-layered roadway section, and segment the extracted route by grade automatically. Overall, it is found that the high accuracy elevation data available from GE provide a reliable data source for various transportation applications. PMID:28445480

Google Earth elevation data extraction and accuracy assessment for transportation applications.

PubMed

Wang, Yinsong; Zou, Yajie; Henrickson, Kristian; Wang, Yinhai; Tang, Jinjun; Park, Byung-Jung

2017-01-01

Roadway elevation data is critical for a variety of transportation analyses. However, it has been challenging to obtain such data and most roadway GIS databases do not have them. This paper intends to address this need by proposing a method to extract roadway elevation data from Google Earth (GE) for transportation applications. A comprehensive accuracy assessment of the GE-extracted elevation data is conducted for the area of conterminous USA. The GE elevation data was compared with the ground truth data from nationwide GPS benchmarks and roadway monuments from six states in the conterminous USA. This study also compares the GE elevation data with the elevation raster data from the U.S. Geological Survey National Elevation Dataset (USGS NED), which is a widely used data source for extracting roadway elevation. Mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean squared error (RMSE) are used to assess the accuracy and the test results show MAE, RMSE and standard deviation of GE roadway elevation error are 1.32 meters, 2.27 meters and 2.27 meters, respectively. Finally, the proposed extraction method was implemented and validated for the following three scenarios: (1) extracting roadway elevation differentiating by directions, (2) multi-layered roadway recognition in freeway segment and (3) slope segmentation and grade calculation in freeway segment. The methodology validation results indicate that the proposed extraction method can locate the extracting route accurately, recognize multi-layered roadway section, and segment the extracted route by grade automatically. Overall, it is found that the high accuracy elevation data available from GE provide a reliable data source for various transportation applications.

Thermoregulation in the lizard Psammodromus algirus along a 2200-m elevational gradient in Sierra Nevada (Spain)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zamora-Camacho, Francisco Javier; Reguera, Senda; Moreno-Rueda, Gregorio

2016-05-01

Achieving optimal body temperature maximizes animal fitness. Since ambient temperature may limit ectotherm thermal performance, it can be constrained in too cold or hot environments. In this sense, elevational gradients encompass contrasting thermal environments. In thermally pauperized elevations, ectotherms may either show adaptations or suboptimal body temperatures. Also, reproductive condition may affect thermal needs. Herein, we examined different thermal ecology and physiology capabilities of the lizard Psammodromus algirus along a 2200-m elevational gradient. We measured field (Tb) and laboratory-preferred (Tpref) body temperatures of lizards with different reproductive conditions, as well as ambient (Ta) and copper-model operative temperature (Te), which we used to determine thermal quality of the habitat (de), accuracy (db), and effectiveness of thermoregulation (de-db) indexes. We detected no Tb trend in elevation, while Ta constrained Tb only at high elevations. Moreover, while Ta decreased more than 7 °C with elevation, Tpref dropped only 0.6 °C, although significantly. Notably, low-elevation lizards faced excess temperature (Te > Tpref). Notably, de was best at middle elevations, followed by high elevations, and poorest at low elevations. Nonetheless, regarding microhabitat, high-elevation de was more suitable in sun-exposed microhabitats, which may increase exposition to predators, and at midday, which may limit daily activity. As for gender, db and de-db were better in females than in males. In conclusion, P. algirus seems capable to face a wide thermal range, which probably contributes to its extensive corology and makes it adaptable to climate changes.

Surface topography of the Greenland Ice Sheet from satellite radar altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bindschadler, Robert A.; Zwally, H. Jay; Major, Judith A.; Brenner, Anita C.

1989-01-01

Surface elevation maps of the southern half of the Greenland subcontinent are produced from radar altimeter data acquired by the Seasat satellite. A summary of the processing procedure and examples of return waveform data are given. The elevation data are used to generate a regular grid which is then computer contoured to provide an elevation contour map. Ancillary maps show the statistical quality of the elevation data and various characteristics of the surface. The elevation map is used to define ice flow directions and delineate the major drainage basins. Regular maps of the Jakobshavns Glacier drainage basin and the ice divide in the vicinity of Crete Station are presented. Altimeter derived elevations are compared with elevations measured both by satellite geoceivers and optical surveying.

SouthWest Elevation, Plan Showing Deck Framing, Deck Plan, Plan of ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

South-West Elevation, Plan Showing Deck Framing, Deck Plan, Plan of Collar Beams, Etc., Typical Framing Details, End Elevations, Elevation of Scarf Top Chord, Joint Details - Perrine's Bridge, Spanning Wallkill River, Rifton, Ulster County, NY

33. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in foreground), Fuel Elevator (left), ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

33. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in foreground), Fuel Elevator (left), Fuel Storage Bins (center), and Power Plant (right) Photographs taken by Joseph E.B. Elliot - Huber Coal Breaker, 101 South Main Street, Ashley, Luzerne County, PA

4th floor sacking deck looking east from 1945 elevator to ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4th floor sacking deck looking east from 1945 elevator to 1913 elevator indicating spout used to load bulk grain into rail cars - Stewart Company Grain Elevator, 16 West Carson Street, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA

Retrieving improved multi-temporal CryoSat elevations over ice caps and glaciers - a case study of Barnes ice cap

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nilsson, Johan; Burgess, David

2014-05-01

The CryoSat mission was launched in 2010 to observe the Earth's cryosphere. In contrast to previous satellite radar altimeters, this mission is expected to monitor the elevation of small ice caps and glaciers, which according to the IPCC will be the largest contributor to 21st century sea level rise. To date the ESA CryoSat SARiN level-2 (L2) elevation product is not yet fully optimized for use over these types of glaciated regions, as its processed with a more universal algorithm. Thus the aim of this study is to demonstrate that with the use of improved processing CryoSat SARiN data can be used for more accurate topography mapping and elevation change detection for ice caps and glaciers. To demonstrate this, elevations and elevation changes over Barnes ice cap, located on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic, have been estimated from available data from the years 2010-2013. ESA's CryoSat level-1b (L1b) SARiN baseline "B" data product was used and processed in-house to estimate surface elevations. The resulting product is referred to as DTU-L2. The processing focused on improving the retracker, reducing phase noise and correcting phase ambiguities. The accuracy of the DTU-L2 and the ESA-L2 product was determined by comparing the measured elevations against NASA's IceBridge Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) elevations from May 2011. The resulting difference in accuracy was determined by comparing their associated errors. From the multi-temporal measurements spanning the period 2010-2013, elevation changes where estimated and compared to ICESat derived changes from 2003-2009. The result of the study shows good agreement between the NASA measured ATM elevations and the DTU-L2 data. It also shows that the pattern of elevation change is similar to that derived from ICESat data. The accuracy of the DTU-L2 estimated elevations is on average several factors higher compared to the ESA-L2 elevation product. These preliminary results demonstrates that CryoSat elevation data, using improved processing, can be used for accurate topographic mapping and elevation change detection on ice caps and glaciers. Future work would entail extending this processing to other regions of this type to support these results.

Changes in host-parasitoid food web structure with elevation.

PubMed

Maunsell, Sarah C; Kitching, Roger L; Burwell, Chris J; Morris, Rebecca J

2015-03-01

Gradients in elevation are increasingly used to investigate how species respond to changes in local climatic conditions. Whilst many studies have shown elevational patterns in species richness and turnover, little is known about how food web structure is affected by elevation. Contrasting responses of predator and prey species to elevation may lead to changes in food web structure. We investigated how the quantitative structure of a herbivore-parasitoid food web changes with elevation in an Australian subtropical rain forest. On four occasions, spread over 1 year, we hand-collected leaf miners at twelve sites, along three elevational gradients (between 493 m and 1159 m a.s.l). A total of 5030 insects, including 603 parasitoids, were reared, and summary food webs were created for each site. We also carried out a replicated manipulative experiment by translocating an abundant leaf-mining weevil Platynotocis sp., which largely escaped parasitism at high elevations (≥ 900 m a.s.l.), to lower, warmer elevations, to test if it would experience higher parasitism pressure. We found strong evidence that the environmental change that occurs with increasing elevation affects food web structure. Quantitative measures of generality, vulnerability and interaction evenness decreased significantly with increasing elevation (and decreasing temperature), whilst elevation did not have a significant effect on connectance. Mined plant composition also had a significant effect on generality and vulnerability, but not on interaction evenness. Several relatively abundant species of leaf miner appeared to escape parasitism at higher elevations, but contrary to our prediction, Platynotocis sp. did not experience greater levels of parasitism when translocated to lower elevations. Our study indicates that leaf-mining herbivores and their parasitoids respond differently to environmental conditions imposed by elevation, thus producing structural changes in their food webs. Increasing temperatures and changes in vegetation communities that are likely to result from climate change may have a restructuring effect on host-parasitoid food webs. Our translocation experiment, however, indicated that leaf miners currently escaping parasitism at high elevations may not automatically experience higher parasitism under warmer conditions and future changes in food web structure may depend on the ability of parasitoids to adapt to novel hosts. © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Animal Ecology © 2014 British Ecological Society.

Effect of elevation on distribution of female bats in the Black Hills, South Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cryan, P.M.; Bogan, M.A.; Altenbach, J.S.

2000-01-01

Presumably, reproductive female bats are more constrained by thermoregulatory and energy needs than are males and nonreproductive females. Constraints imposed on reproductive females may limit their geographic distribution relative to other bats. Such constraints likely increase with latitude and elevation. Males of 11 bat species that inhabit the Black Hills were captured more frequently than females, and reproductive females typically were encountered at low-elevational sites. To investigate the relationship between female distribution and elevation, we fitted a logistic regression model to evaluate the probability of reproductive-female capture as a function of elevation. Mist-net data from 1,197 captures of 7 species revealed that 75% of all captures were males. We found a significant inverse relationship between elevation and relative abundance of reproductive females. Relative abundance of reproductive females decreased as elevation increased. Reproductive females may be constrained from roosting and foraging in high-elevational habitats that impose thermoregulatory costs and decrease foraging efficiency. Failure to account for sex differences in distributional patterns along elevational gradients may significantly bias estimates of population size.

A new sternum elevator reduces severe complications during minimally invasive repair of the pectus excavatum.

PubMed

Takagi, Satoshi; Oyama, Takuto; Tomokazu, Nishihira; Kinoshita, Koji; Makino, Taro; Ohjimi, Hiroyuki

2012-06-01

Although the Nuss procedure for pectus excavatum is widely employed, a variety of complications have been reported with relatively high frequency; those that involve cardiac and pericardial injuries can be life threatening. To reduce such dangers, we present here a newly developed sternal elevator. The elevator is horseshoe shaped. Its elevator side has the same curvature as a Nuss introducer, so that interference between devices is minimal and no extra skin incision is needed for the elevator insertion. The elevator holds the sternum forward and enlarges the retrosternal space for safer passage of thoracoscopically guided introducer. The authors have used the elevator for 61 pectus excavatum cases between March 2004 and December 2009 without any major complications. The entire process of substernal tunneling was endoscopically observed, which eliminated any blunt and blind dissection, even in a significantly depressed funnel chest case. With the device, the sternum was effectively elevated again for the placement of the second plate in 30 cases. Our newly developed sternum elevator makes the Nuss procedure safer and more affordable without introducing any extra scarring.

Accuracy assessment of the U.S. Geological Survey National Elevation Dataset, and comparison with other large-area elevation datasets: SRTM and ASTER

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gesch, Dean B.; Oimoen, Michael J.; Evans, Gayla A.

2014-01-01

The National Elevation Dataset (NED) is the primary elevation data product produced and distributed by the U.S. Geological Survey. The NED provides seamless raster elevation data of the conterminous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. island territories, Mexico, and Canada. The NED is derived from diverse source datasets that are processed to a specification with consistent resolutions, coordinate system, elevation units, and horizontal and vertical datums. The NED serves as the elevation layer of The National Map, and it provides basic elevation information for earth science studies and mapping applications in the United States and most of North America. An important part of supporting scientific and operational use of the NED is provision of thorough dataset documentation including data quality and accuracy metrics. The focus of this report is on the vertical accuracy of the NED and on comparison of the NED with other similar large-area elevation datasets, namely data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) and the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER).

Background-Source Cosmic-Photon Elevation Scaling and Cosmic-Neutron/Photon Date Scaling in MCNP6

DOE PAGES

Tutt, James Robert; Anderson, Casey Alan; McKinney, Gregg Walter

2017-10-26

Here, cosmic neutron and photon fluxes are known to scale exponentially with elevation. Consequently, cosmic neutron elevation scaling was implemented for use with the background-source option shortly after its introduction into MCNP6, whereby the neutron flux weight factor was adjusted by the elevation scaling factor when the user-specified elevation differed from the selected background.dat grid-point elevation. At the same time, an elevation scaling factor was suggested for the cosmic photon flux, however, cosmic photon elevation scaling is complicated by the fact that the photon background consists of two components: cosmic and terrestrial. Previous versions of the background.dat file did notmore » provide any way to separate these components. With Rel. 4 of this file in 2015, two new columns were added that provide the energy grid and differential cosmic photon flux separately from the total photon flux. Here we show that the cosmic photon flux component can now be scaled independently and combined with the terrestrial component to form the total photon flux at a user-specified elevation in MCNP6.« less

Background-Source Cosmic-Photon Elevation Scaling and Cosmic-Neutron/Photon Date Scaling in MCNP6

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tutt, James Robert; Anderson, Casey Alan; McKinney, Gregg Walter

Here, cosmic neutron and photon fluxes are known to scale exponentially with elevation. Consequently, cosmic neutron elevation scaling was implemented for use with the background-source option shortly after its introduction into MCNP6, whereby the neutron flux weight factor was adjusted by the elevation scaling factor when the user-specified elevation differed from the selected background.dat grid-point elevation. At the same time, an elevation scaling factor was suggested for the cosmic photon flux, however, cosmic photon elevation scaling is complicated by the fact that the photon background consists of two components: cosmic and terrestrial. Previous versions of the background.dat file did notmore » provide any way to separate these components. With Rel. 4 of this file in 2015, two new columns were added that provide the energy grid and differential cosmic photon flux separately from the total photon flux. Here we show that the cosmic photon flux component can now be scaled independently and combined with the terrestrial component to form the total photon flux at a user-specified elevation in MCNP6.« less

Elevated atmospheric CO₂ mitigated photoinhibition in a tropical tree species, Gmelina arborea.

PubMed

Rasineni, Girish Kumar; Guha, Anirban; Reddy, Attipalli Ramachandra

2011-05-03

Effects of elevated CO₂ on photosynthetic CO₂ assimilation, PSII photochemistry and photoinhibition were investigated in the leaves of a fast growing tropical tree species, Gmelina arborea (Verbenaceae) during summer days of peak growth season under natural light. Elevated CO₂ had a significant effect on CO₂ assimilation rates and maximal efficiency of PSII photochemistry. Chlorophyll a fluorescence induction kinetics were measured to determine the influence of elevated CO₂ on PSII efficiency. During midday, elevated CO₂-grown Gmelina showed significantly higher net photosynthesis (p<0.001) and greater F(V)/F(M) (p<0.001) than those grown under ambient CO₂. The impact of elevated CO₂ on photosynthetic rates and Chl a fluorescence were more pronounced during midday depression where the impact of high irradiance decreased in plants grown under elevated CO₂ compared to ambient CO₂-grown plants. Our results clearly demonstrate that decreased susceptibility to photoinhibition in elevated CO₂ grown plants was associated with increased accumulation of active PSII reaction centers and efficient photochemical quenching. We conclude that elevated CO₂ treatment resulted in easy diminution of midday photosynthetic depression. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Changes in wetland sediment elevation following major storms: implications for estimating trends in relative sea-level rise

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cahoon, D.R.

2003-01-01

Hurricanes can be important agents of geomorphic change in coastal marshes and mangrove forests. Hurricanes can cause large-scale redistribution of sediments within the coastal environment resulting in sedimentation, erosion, disruption of vegetated substrates, or some combination of these processes in coastal wetlands. It has been proposed that such sediment pulsing events are important at maintaining wetland sediment elevations in sediment-poor settings with high rates of relative sea-level rise, such as the Mississippi River Delta. But do these pulsing events result in a net gain in sediment elevation even when substantial amounts of sediment are deposited? Clearly sediment erosion and scour would result in a loss of elevation. But will a substantial sediment deposit on poorly consolidated sediments always result in a net gain in elevation? If the wetland vegetation is killed by wind, tidal surge, or the introduction of saline water, will there be a collapse of sediment elevation in the absence of root production and ongoing decomposition of root matter? During the past decade several wetlands where my colleagues and I have monitored sedimentation and elevation change have been struck by one to several hurricanes. This paper describes the range of sediment elevation responses to hurricane strikes, the suggested mechanisms driving those responses, the implications for estimating long-term trends in relative sea-level rise, and future research needs for improving our understanding of the role that major storms play in wetland sediment elevation dynamics. For many wetlands the change in sediment elevation was directly proportional to the amount of sediment deposited by the storm. But surprisingly, there was a loss of elevation in some wetlands with substantial sediment deposits. In these wetlands, the impact of the storm was either direct (sedimentation and compaction) or indirect (vegetation death), and the effect on sediment elevation was either permanent or temporary. For example, 2 cm of sediment deposited by Hurricane Andrew on a healthy salt marsh in south Louisiana had a direct and positive effect on sediment elevation. But in a deteriorated salt marsh a 3 cm thick sediment deposit was associated with a permanent loss in elevation (we have monitored this site for 10 years). The apparent mechanism driving elevation loss was compaction of the weakened substrate by the weight of the sediment deposit, the storm surge waters, or both. Clearly, storm-related sediment pulses are not going to save this marsh from becoming submerged by rising sea level. A temporary loss in elevation, as much as 2 cm, was observed in a North Carolina salt marsh with a highly organic substrate after each of 3 successive hurricanes even when sediment was deposited. The loss in elevation was apparently related to degassing of the chronically flooded substrate while the rebound in elevation was apparently related to a temporary drawdown of marsh water levels. Interestingly, sediment elevation increased after Hurricane Dennis in 1999, although the increase was less than the thickness of the sediment deposit. Further research is required to determine the mechanisms driving storm-related elevation change (i.e., compaction and expansion) in this marsh. There were two marshes where the gain in sediment elevation was greater than the thickness of the sediment deposit, but the effect was short-lived. In a high salt marsh in southern California, we hypothesize that the temporary spike in elevation was related to the flushing of salts from the hypersaline soils, which enhanced root growth that led to an increase in elevation. In a marsh with a highly organic substrate in north Florida, temporary increases in elevation (as much as 2 cm) greater than the thickness of the sediment deposit were apparently related to groundwater fluxes, which may have been influenced by enhanced runoff from storm rainfall. Lastly, Hurricane Mitch

Geomorphic controls on elevational gradients of species richness.

PubMed

Bertuzzo, Enrico; Carrara, Francesco; Mari, Lorenzo; Altermatt, Florian; Rodriguez-Iturbe, Ignacio; Rinaldo, Andrea

2016-02-16

Elevational gradients of biodiversity have been widely investigated, and yet a clear interpretation of the biotic and abiotic factors that determine how species richness varies with elevation is still elusive. In mountainous landscapes, habitats at different elevations are characterized by different areal extent and connectivity properties, key drivers of biodiversity, as predicted by metacommunity theory. However, most previous studies directly correlated species richness to elevational gradients of potential drivers, thus neglecting the interplay between such gradients and the environmental matrix. Here, we investigate the role of geomorphology in shaping patterns of species richness. We develop a spatially explicit zero-sum metacommunity model where species have an elevation-dependent fitness and otherwise neutral traits. Results show that ecological dynamics over complex terrains lead to the null expectation of a hump-shaped elevational gradient of species richness, a pattern widely observed empirically. Local species richness is found to be related to the landscape elevational connectivity, as quantified by a newly proposed metric that applies tools of complex network theory to measure the closeness of a site to others with similar habitat. Our theoretical results suggest clear geomorphic controls on elevational gradients of species richness and support the use of the landscape elevational connectivity as a null model for the analysis of the distribution of biodiversity.

[Risk factors for elevated serum total bile acid in preterm infants].

PubMed

Song, Yan-Ting; Wang, Yong-Qin; Zhao, Yue-Hua; Zhu, Hai-Ling; Liu, Qian; Zhang, Xiao; Gao, Yi-Wen; Zhang, Wei-Ye; Sang, Yu-Tong

2018-03-01

To study the risk factors for elevated serum total bile acid (TBA) in preterm infants. A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 216 preterm infants who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. According to the presence or absence of elevated TBA (TBA >24.8 μmol/L), the preterm infants were divided into elevated TBA group with 53 infants and non-elevated TBA group with 163 infants. A univariate analysis and an unconditional multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the risk factors for elevated TBA. The univariate analysis showed that there were significant differences between the elevated TBA group and the non-elevated TBA group in gestational age at birth, birth weight, proportion of small-for-gestational-age infants, proportion of infants undergoing ventilator-assisted ventilation, fasting time, parenteral nutrition time, and incidence of neonatal respiratory failure and sepsis (P<0.05). The unconditional multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that low birth weight (OR=3.84, 95%CI: 1.53-9.64) and neonatal sepsis (OR=2.56, 95%CI: 1.01-6.47) were independent risk factors for elevated TBA in preterm infants. Low birth weight and neonatal sepsis may lead to elevated TBA in preterm infants.

The Landcover Impact on the Aspect/Slope Accuracy Dependence of the SRTM-1 Elevation Data for the Humboldt Range.

PubMed

Miliaresis, George C

2008-05-15

The U.S. National Landcover Dataset (NLCD) and the U.S National Elevation Dataset (NED) (bare earth elevations) were used in an attempt to assess to what extent the directional and slope dependency of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) finished digital elevation model is affected by landcover. Four landcover classes: forest, shrubs, grass and snow cover, were included in the study area (Humboldt Range in NW portion of Nevada, USA). Statistics, rose diagrams, and frequency distributions of the elevation differences (NED-SRTM) per landcover class per geographic direction were used. The decomposition of elevation differences on the basis of aspect and slope terrain classes identifies a) over-estimation of elevation by the SRTM instrument along E, NE and N directions (negative elevation difference that decreases linearly with slope) while b) underestimation is evident towards W, SW and S directions (positive elevation difference increasing with slope). The aspect/slope/landcover elevation differences modelling overcome the systematic errors evident in the SRTM dataset and revealed vegetation height information and the snow penetration capability of the SRTM instrument. The linear regression lines per landcover class might provide means of correcting the systematic error (aspect/slope dependency) evident in SRTM dataset.

The Landcover Impact on the Aspect/Slope Accuracy Dependence of the SRTM-1 Elevation Data for the Humboldt Range

PubMed Central

Miliaresis, George C.

2008-01-01

The U.S. National Landcover Dataset (NLCD) and the U.S National Elevation Dataset (NED) (bare earth elevations) were used in an attempt to assess to what extent the directional and slope dependency of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) finished digital elevation model is affected by landcover. Four landcover classes: forest, shrubs, grass and snow cover, were included in the study area (Humboldt Range in NW portion of Nevada, USA). Statistics, rose diagrams, and frequency distributions of the elevation differences (NED-SRTM) per landcover class per geographic direction were used. The decomposition of elevation differences on the basis of aspect and slope terrain classes identifies a) over-estimation of elevation by the SRTM instrument along E, NE and N directions (negative elevation difference that decreases linearly with slope) while b) underestimation is evident towards W, SW and S directions (positive elevation difference increasing with slope). The aspect/slope/landcover elevation differences modelling overcome the systematic errors evident in the SRTM dataset and revealed vegetation height information and the snow penetration capability of the SRTM instrument. The linear regression lines per landcover class might provide means of correcting the systematic error (aspect/slope dependency) evident in SRTM dataset. PMID:27879870

Geomorphic controls on elevational gradients of species richness

PubMed Central

Bertuzzo, Enrico; Carrara, Francesco; Mari, Lorenzo; Altermatt, Florian; Rodriguez-Iturbe, Ignacio; Rinaldo, Andrea

2016-01-01

Elevational gradients of biodiversity have been widely investigated, and yet a clear interpretation of the biotic and abiotic factors that determine how species richness varies with elevation is still elusive. In mountainous landscapes, habitats at different elevations are characterized by different areal extent and connectivity properties, key drivers of biodiversity, as predicted by metacommunity theory. However, most previous studies directly correlated species richness to elevational gradients of potential drivers, thus neglecting the interplay between such gradients and the environmental matrix. Here, we investigate the role of geomorphology in shaping patterns of species richness. We develop a spatially explicit zero-sum metacommunity model where species have an elevation-dependent fitness and otherwise neutral traits. Results show that ecological dynamics over complex terrains lead to the null expectation of a hump-shaped elevational gradient of species richness, a pattern widely observed empirically. Local species richness is found to be related to the landscape elevational connectivity, as quantified by a newly proposed metric that applies tools of complex network theory to measure the closeness of a site to others with similar habitat. Our theoretical results suggest clear geomorphic controls on elevational gradients of species richness and support the use of the landscape elevational connectivity as a null model for the analysis of the distribution of biodiversity. PMID:26831107

Surface elevation dynamics in a regenerating mangrove forest at Homebush Bay, Australia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rogers, K.; Saintilan, N.; Cahoon, D.

2005-01-01

Following the dieback of an interior portion of a mangrove forest at Homebush Bay, Australia, surface elevation tables and feldspar marker horizons were installed in the impacted, intermediate and control forest to measure vertical accretion, elevation change, and shallow subsidence. The objectives of the study were to determine current vertical accretion and elevation change rates as a guide to understanding mangrove dieback, ascertain the factors controlling surface elevation change, and investigate the sustainability of the mangrove forest under estimated sea-level rise conditions. The study demonstrates that the influences on surface dynamics are more complex than soil accretion and soil autocompaction alone. During strong vegetative regrowth in the impacted forest, surface elevation increase exceeded vertical accretion apparently as a result of belowground biomass production. In addition, surface elevation in all forest zones was correlated with total monthly rainfall during a severe El Ni?o event, highlighting the importance of rainfall to groundwater recharge and surface elevation. Surface elevation increase for all zones exceeded the 85-year sea level trend for Sydney Harbour. Since mean sea-level also decreased during the El Ni?o event, the decrease in surface elevation did not translate to an increase in inundation frequency or influence the sustainability of the mangrove forest. These findings indicate that subsurface soil processes such as organic matter accumulation and groundwater flux can significantly influence mangrove surface elevation, and contribute to the long-term sustainability of mangrove systems under a scenario of rising sea levels.

Effect of high altitude on blood glucose meter performance.

PubMed

Fink, Kenneth S; Christensen, Dale B; Ellsworth, Allan

2002-01-01

Participation in high-altitude wilderness activities may expose persons to extreme environmental conditions, and for those with diabetes mellitus, euglycemia is important to ensure safe travel. We conducted a field assessment of the precision and accuracy of seven commonly used blood glucose meters while mountaineering on Mount Rainier, located in Washington State (elevation 14,410 ft). At various elevations each climber-subject used the randomly assigned device to measure the glucose level of capillary blood and three different concentrations of standardized control solutions, and a venous sample was also collected for later glucose analysis. Ordinary least squares regression was used to assess the effect of elevation and of other environmental potential covariates on the precision and accuracy of blood glucose meters. Elevation affects glucometer precision (p = 0.08), but becomes less significant (p = 0.21) when adjusted for temperature and relative humidity. The overall effect of elevation was to underestimate glucose levels by approximately 1-2% (unadjusted) for each 1,000 ft gain in elevation. Blood glucose meter accuracy was affected by elevation (p = 0.03), temperature (p < 0.01), and relative humidity (p = 0.04) after adjustment for the other variables. The interaction between elevation and relative humidity had a meaningful but not statistically significant effect on accuracy (p = 0.07). Thus, elevation, temperature, and relative humidity affect blood glucose meter performance, and elevated glucose levels are more greatly underestimated at higher elevations. Further research will help to identify which blood glucose meters are best suited for specific environments.

35. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in center), Fuel Elevator (left), ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

35. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in center), Fuel Elevator (left), Fuel Storage Bins (center), and Power Plant (far center), and Retail Coal Storage Bins (right) Photograph taken by George Harven - Huber Coal Breaker, 101 South Main Street, Ashley, Luzerne County, PA

34. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in foreground), Fuel Elevator (left), ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

34. Coal Fuel Elevator (diagonal in foreground), Fuel Elevator (left), Fuel Storage Bins (center), and Power Plant (far center), and Retail Coal Storage Bins (right) Photograph taken by George Harven - Huber Coal Breaker, 101 South Main Street, Ashley, Luzerne County, PA

69. View underneath elevated Mainline structure (Section F5) looking ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

69. View underneath elevated Mainline structure (Section F-5) - looking North - along Washington Street near the corner of the former Lotus Place. Arborway Yards and garage are at the right. - Boston Elevated Railway, Elevated Mainline, Washington Street, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

44 CFR 67.4 - Proposed flood elevation determination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Proposed flood elevation..., DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY INSURANCE AND HAZARD MITIGATION National Flood Insurance Program APPEALS FROM PROPOSED FLOOD ELEVATION DETERMINATIONS § 67.4 Proposed flood elevation determination. The Federal...

76 FR 73534 - Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-11-29

...-2011-0002; Internal Agency Docket No. FEMA-B-1230] Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations AGENCY... proposed Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and proposed BFE modifications for the communities... regarding the proposed regulatory flood elevations for the reach described by the downstream and upstream...

44 CFR 67.4 - Proposed flood elevation determination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY INSURANCE AND HAZARD MITIGATION National Flood Insurance Program APPEALS FROM PROPOSED FLOOD ELEVATION DETERMINATIONS § 67.4 Proposed flood elevation determination. The Federal... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2012-10-01 2011-10-01 true Proposed flood elevation...

44 CFR 67.4 - Proposed flood elevation determination.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY INSURANCE AND HAZARD MITIGATION National Flood Insurance Program APPEALS FROM PROPOSED FLOOD ELEVATION DETERMINATIONS § 67.4 Proposed flood elevation determination. The Federal... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Proposed flood elevation...

Elevated seawater temperature, not pCO2, negatively affects post-spawning adult mussels (Mytilus edulis) under food limitation.

PubMed

Clements, Jeff C; Hicks, Carla; Tremblay, Réjan; Comeau, Luc A

2018-01-01

Pre-spawning blue mussels ( Mytilus edulis ) appear sensitive to elevated temperature and robust to elevated p CO 2 ; however, the effects of these stressors soon after investing energy into spawning remain unknown. Furthermore, while studies suggest that elevated p CO 2 affects the byssal attachment strength of Mytilus trossulus from southern latitudes, p CO 2 and temperature impacts on the byssus strength of other species at higher latitudes remain undocumented. In a 90 day laboratory experiment, we exposed post-spawning adult blue mussels ( M. edulis ) from Atlantic Canada to three p CO 2 levels ( p CO 2 ~625, 1295 and 2440 μatm) at two different temperatures (16°C and 22°C) and assessed energetic reserves on Day 90, byssal attachment strength on Days 30 and 60, and condition index and mortality on Days 30, 60 and 90. Results indicated that glycogen content was negatively affected under elevated temperature, but protein, lipid, and overall energy content were unaffected. Reduced glycogen content under elevated temperature was associated with reduced condition index, reduced byssal thread attachment strength, and increased mortality; elevated p CO 2 had no effects. Overall, these results suggest that the glycogen reserves of post-spawning adult M. edulis are sensitive to elevated temperature, and can result in reduced health and byssal attachment strength, leading to increased mortality. These results are similar to those reported for pre-spawning mussels and suggest that post-spawning blue mussels are tolerant to elevated p CO 2 and sensitive to elevated temperature. In contrast to previous studies, however, elevated pCO 2 did not affect byssus strength, suggesting that negative effects of elevated p CO 2 on byssus strength are not universal.

Spring leaf flush in aspen (Populus tremuloides) clones is altered by long-term growth at elevated carbon dioxide and elevated ozone concentration.

PubMed

McGrath, Justin M; Karnosky, David F; Ainsworth, Elizabeth A

2010-04-01

Early spring leaf out is important to the success of deciduous trees competing for light and space in dense forest plantation canopies. In this study, we investigated spring leaf flush and how long-term growth at elevated carbon dioxide concentration ([CO(2)]) and elevated ozone concentration ([O(3)]) altered leaf area index development in a closed Populus tremuloides (aspen) canopy. This work was done at the Aspen FACE experiment where aspen clones have been grown since 1997 in conditions simulating the [CO(2)] and [O(3)] predicted for approximately 2050. The responses of two clones were compared during the first month of spring leaf out when CO(2) fumigation had begun, but O(3) fumigation had not. Trees in elevated [CO(2)] plots showed a stimulation of leaf area index (36%), while trees in elevated [O(3)] plots had lower leaf area index (-20%). While individual leaf area was not significantly affected by elevated [CO(2)], the photosynthetic operating efficiency of aspen leaves was significantly improved (51%). There were no significant differences in the way that the two aspen clones responded to elevated [CO(2)]; however, the two clones responded differently to long-term growth at elevated [O(3)]. The O(3)-sensitive clone, 42E, had reduced individual leaf area when grown at elevated [O(3)] (-32%), while the tolerant clone, 216, had larger mature leaf area at elevated [O(3)] (46%). These results indicate a clear difference between the two clones in their long-term response to elevated [O(3)], which could affect competition between the clones, and result in altered genotypic composition in future atmospheric conditions. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Thermoregulation in the lizard Psammodromus algirus along a 2200-m elevational gradient in Sierra Nevada (Spain).

PubMed

Zamora-Camacho, Francisco Javier; Reguera, Senda; Moreno-Rueda, Gregorio

2016-05-01

Achieving optimal body temperature maximizes animal fitness. Since ambient temperature may limit ectotherm thermal performance, it can be constrained in too cold or hot environments. In this sense, elevational gradients encompass contrasting thermal environments. In thermally pauperized elevations, ectotherms may either show adaptations or suboptimal body temperatures. Also, reproductive condition may affect thermal needs. Herein, we examined different thermal ecology and physiology capabilities of the lizard Psammodromus algirus along a 2200-m elevational gradient. We measured field (T(b)) and laboratory-preferred (T(pref)) body temperatures of lizards with different reproductive conditions, as well as ambient (T(a)) and copper-model operative temperature (T(e)), which we used to determine thermal quality of the habitat (d(e)), accuracy (d(b)), and effectiveness of thermoregulation (de-db) indexes. We detected no Tb trend in elevation, while T(a) constrained T(b) only at high elevations. Moreover, while Ta decreased more than 7 °C with elevation, T(pref) dropped only 0.6 °C, although significantly. Notably, low-elevation lizards faced excess temperature (T(e) > T(pref)). Notably, de was best at middle elevations, followed by high elevations, and poorest at low elevations. Nonetheless, regarding microhabitat, high-elevation de was more suitable in sun-exposed microhabitats, which may increase exposition to predators, and at midday, which may limit daily activity. As for gender, d(b) and d(e)-d(b) were better in females than in males. In conclusion, P. algirus seems capable to face a wide thermal range, which probably contributes to its extensive corology and makes it adaptable to climate changes.

Carbon gain and bud physiology in Populus tremuloides and Betula papyrifera grown under long-term exposure to elevated concentrations of CO2 and O3.

PubMed

Riikonen, Johanna; Kets, Katre; Darbah, Joseph; Oksanen, Elina; Sober, Anu; Vapaavuori, Elina; Kubiske, Mark E; Nelson, Neil; Karnosky, David F

2008-02-01

Paper birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.) and three trembling aspen clones (Populus tremuloides Michx.) were studied to determine if alterations in carbon gain in response to an elevated concentration of CO(2) ([CO(2)]) or O(3) ([O(3)]) or a combination of both affected bud size and carbohydrate composition in autumn, and early leaf development in the following spring. The trees were measured for gas exchange, leaf size, date of leaf abscission, size and biochemical characteristics of the overwintering buds and early leaf development during the 8th-9th year of free-air CO(2) and O(3) exposure at the Aspen FACE site located near Rhinelander, WI. Net photosynthesis was enhanced 49-73% by elevated [CO(2)], and decreased 13-30% by elevated [O(3)]. Elevated [CO(2)] delayed, and elevated [O(3)] tended to accelerate, leaf abscission in autumn. Elevated [CO(2)] increased the ratio of monosaccharides to di- and oligosaccharides in aspen buds, which may indicate a lag in cold acclimation. The total carbon concentration in overwintering buds was unaffected by the treatments, although elevated [O(3)] decreased the amount of starch by 16% in birch buds, and reduced the size of aspen buds, which may be related to the delayed leaf development in aspen during the spring. Elevated [CO(2)] generally ameliorated the effects of elevated [O(3)]. Our results show that both elevated [CO(2)] and elevated [O(3)] have the potential to alter carbon metabolism of overwintering buds. These changes may cause carry-over effects during the next growing season.

Biogeographical Interpretation of Elevational Patterns of Genus Diversity of Seed Plants in Nepal

PubMed Central

Li, Miao; Feng, Jianmeng

2015-01-01

This study tests if the biogeographical affinities of genera are relevant for explaining elevational plant diversity patterns in Nepal. We used simultaneous autoregressive (SAR) models to investigate the explanatory power of several predictors in explaining the diversity-elevation relationships shown in genera with different biogeographical affinities. Delta akaike information criterion (ΔAIC) was used for multi-model inferences and selections. Our results showed that both the total and tropical genus diversity peaked below the mid-point of the elevational gradient, whereas that of temperate genera had a nearly symmetrical, unimodal relationship with elevation. The proportion of temperate genera increased markedly with elevation, while that of tropical genera declined. Compared to tropical genera, temperate genera had wider elevational ranges and were observed at higher elevations. Water-related variables, rather than mid-domain effects (MDE), were the most significant predictors of elevational patterns of tropical genus diversity. The temperate genus diversity was influenced by energy availability, but only in quadratic terms of the models. Though climatic factors and mid-domain effects jointly explained most of the variation in the diversity of temperate genera with elevation, the former played stronger roles. Total genus diversity was most strongly influenced by climate and the floristic overlap of tropical and temperate floras, while the influences of mid-domain effects were relatively weak. The influences of water-related and energy-related variables may vary with biogeographical affinities. The elevational patterns may be most closely related to climatic factors, while MDE may somewhat modify the patterns. Caution is needed when investigating the causal factors underlying diversity patterns for large taxonomic groups composed of taxa of different biogeographical affinities. Right-skewed diversity-elevation patterns may be produced by the differential response of taxa with varying biogeographical affinities to climatic factors and MDE. PMID:26488164

Biogeographical Interpretation of Elevational Patterns of Genus Diversity of Seed Plants in Nepal.

PubMed

Li, Miao; Feng, Jianmeng

2015-01-01

This study tests if the biogeographical affinities of genera are relevant for explaining elevational plant diversity patterns in Nepal. We used simultaneous autoregressive (SAR) models to investigate the explanatory power of several predictors in explaining the diversity-elevation relationships shown in genera with different biogeographical affinities. Delta akaike information criterion (ΔAIC) was used for multi-model inferences and selections. Our results showed that both the total and tropical genus diversity peaked below the mid-point of the elevational gradient, whereas that of temperate genera had a nearly symmetrical, unimodal relationship with elevation. The proportion of temperate genera increased markedly with elevation, while that of tropical genera declined. Compared to tropical genera, temperate genera had wider elevational ranges and were observed at higher elevations. Water-related variables, rather than mid-domain effects (MDE), were the most significant predictors of elevational patterns of tropical genus diversity. The temperate genus diversity was influenced by energy availability, but only in quadratic terms of the models. Though climatic factors and mid-domain effects jointly explained most of the variation in the diversity of temperate genera with elevation, the former played stronger roles. Total genus diversity was most strongly influenced by climate and the floristic overlap of tropical and temperate floras, while the influences of mid-domain effects were relatively weak. The influences of water-related and energy-related variables may vary with biogeographical affinities. The elevational patterns may be most closely related to climatic factors, while MDE may somewhat modify the patterns. Caution is needed when investigating the causal factors underlying diversity patterns for large taxonomic groups composed of taxa of different biogeographical affinities. Right-skewed diversity-elevation patterns may be produced by the differential response of taxa with varying biogeographical affinities to climatic factors and MDE.

The National Map - Elevation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gesch, Dean; Evans, Gayla; Mauck, James; Hutchinson, John; Carswell, William J.

2009-01-01

The National Elevation Dataset (NED) is the primary elevation data product produced and distributed by the USGS. The NED provides seamless raster elevation data of the conterminous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and the island territories. The NED is derived from diverse source data sets that are processed to a specification with a consistent resolution, coordinate system, elevation units, and horizontal and vertical datums. The NED is the logical result of the maturation of the long-standing USGS elevation program, which for many years concentrated on production of topographic map quadrangle-based digital elevation models. The NED serves as the elevation layer of The National Map, and provides basic elevation information for earth science studies and mapping applications in the United States. The NED is a multi-resolution dataset that is updated bimonthly to integrate newly available, improved elevation source data. NED data are available nationally at grid spacings of 1 arc-second (approximately 30 meters) for the conterminous United States, and at 1/3 and 1/9 arc-seconds (approximately 10 and 3 meters, respectively) for parts of the United States. Most of the NED for Alaska is available at 2-arc-second (about 60 meters) grid spacing, where only lower resolution source data exist. Part of Alaska is available at the 1/3-arc-second resolution, and plans are in development for a significant upgrade in elevation data coverage of the State over the next 5 years. Specifications for the NED include the following: *Coordinate system: Geographic (decimal degrees of latitude and longitude), *Horizontal datum: North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83), *Vertical datum: North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) over the conterminous United States and varies in other areas, and *Elevation units: Decimal meters.

Factors Determining Forest Diversity and Biomass on a Tropical Volcano, Mt. Rinjani, Lombok, Indonesia

PubMed Central

Dossa, Gbadamassi G. O.; Paudel, Ekananda; Fujinuma, Junichi; Yu, Haiying; Chutipong, Wanlop; Zhang, Yuan; Paz, Sherryl; Harrison, Rhett D.

2013-01-01

Tropical volcanoes are an important but understudied ecosystem, and the relationships between plant species diversity and compositional change and elevation may differ from mountains created by uplift, because of their younger and more homogeneous soils. We sampled vegetation over an altitudinal gradient on Mt. Rinjani, Lombok, Indonesia. We modeled alpha- (plot) and beta- (among plot) diversity (Fisher's alpha), compositional change, and biomass against elevation and selected covariates. We also examined community phylogenetic structure across the elevational gradient. We recorded 902 trees and shrubs among 92 species, and 67 species of ground-cover plants. For understorey, subcanopy and canopy plants, an increase in elevation was associated with a decline in alpha-diversity, whereas data for ground-cover plants suggested a hump-shaped pattern. Elevation was consistently the most important factor in determining alpha-diversity for all components. The alpha-diversity of ground-cover vegetation was also negatively correlated with leaf area index, which suggests low light conditions in the understorey may limit diversity at lower elevations. Beta-diversity increased with elevation for ground-cover plants and declined at higher elevations for other components of the vegetation. However, statistical power was low and we could not resolve the relative importance to beta-diversity of different factors. Multivariate GLMs of variation in community composition among plots explained 67.05%, 27.63%, 18.24%, and 19.80% of the variation (deviance) for ground-cover, understorey, subcanopy and canopy plants, respectively, and demonstrated that elevation was a consistently important factor in determining community composition. Above-ground biomass showed no significant pattern with elevation and was also not significantly associated with alpha-diversity. At lower elevations communities had a random phylogenetic structure, but from 1600 m communities were phylogenetically clustered. This suggests a greater role of environmental filtering at higher elevations, and thus provides a possible explanation for the observed decline in diversity with elevation. PMID:23935842

Single-Frame Terrain Mapping Software for Robotic Vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rankin, Arturo L.

2011-01-01

This software is a component in an unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) perception system that builds compact, single-frame terrain maps for distribution to other systems, such as a world model or an operator control unit, over a local area network (LAN). Each cell in the map encodes an elevation value, terrain classification, object classification, terrain traversability, terrain roughness, and a confidence value into four bytes of memory. The input to this software component is a range image (from a lidar or stereo vision system), and optionally a terrain classification image and an object classification image, both registered to the range image. The single-frame terrain map generates estimates of the support surface elevation, ground cover elevation, and minimum canopy elevation; generates terrain traversability cost; detects low overhangs and high-density obstacles; and can perform geometry-based terrain classification (ground, ground cover, unknown). A new origin is automatically selected for each single-frame terrain map in global coordinates such that it coincides with the corner of a world map cell. That way, single-frame terrain maps correctly line up with the world map, facilitating the merging of map data into the world map. Instead of using 32 bits to store the floating-point elevation for a map cell, the vehicle elevation is assigned to the map origin elevation and reports the change in elevation (from the origin elevation) in terms of the number of discrete steps. The single-frame terrain map elevation resolution is 2 cm. At that resolution, terrain elevation from 20.5 to 20.5 m (with respect to the vehicle's elevation) is encoded into 11 bits. For each four-byte map cell, bits are assigned to encode elevation, terrain roughness, terrain classification, object classification, terrain traversability cost, and a confidence value. The vehicle s current position and orientation, the map origin, and the map cell resolution are all included in a header for each map. The map is compressed into a vector prior to delivery to another system.

[Liver enzymes elevation: etiologic study and efficiency of a single-act office visit].

PubMed

Bendezú García, Rogger Álvaro; Casado Martín, Marta; Lázaro Sáez, Marta; Patrón Román, Gustavo Óliver; Gálvez Miras, Alejandra; Rodríguez Laiz, Gonzalo P; González Sánchez, Mercedes; Vega Sáenz, José Luis

2013-01-01

Liver enzyme (LE) elevation is a common finding in routine blood analysis. There is very little information on the most prevalent causes of these alterations in our population. In addition, a number of tests and several visits to the specialist are required to reach a diagnosis. For these reasons, we designed a protocol to streamline the evaluation of patients with LE elevations in a single-act office visit. From March 2008 until June 2010, we studied all patients with incidental LE elevation (isolated transaminase elevation, combined elevation of alkaline phosphatase [FA] and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase [GGT], or isolated elevation of GGT) who were referred by their primary care physicians. At the time of referral, a complete biochemistry analysis was performed (LE, viral serology, autoantibodies, ceruloplasmin, iron metabolism, alpha-1-antitrypsin and thyroid hormones) and the patients underwent an abdominal ultrasound scan on the day of the office evaluation by the hepatologist. A total of 427 patients were included in our study. The most common cause of transaminase elevation was non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) (40%), followed by alcohol intake (17%), and hepatitis C virus infection (13%). Elevated GGT levels were most commonly related to NAFLD (30%), closely followed by alcohol intake (27%), and hepatotoxicity (8%). Combined elevation of GGT and FA was associated with NAFLD (21%), alcohol (17%), and hepatotoxicity (11%). Self-limited elevation was seen in 9% of the patients and we could not identify a definite cause in 11%. A definitive diagnosis was reached in 79% of the patients. The single-act office visit has proven to be efficient, yielding a diagnosis in most of the patients. The most common cause of elevated LE was NAFLD. Transaminase elevation must be confirmed before a more thorough work-up is started. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L. and AEEH y AEG. All rights reserved.

77 FR 6980 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-10

... feet above ground [caret] Elevation in meters (MSL) Modified Unincorporated Areas of Nowata County... Sea Level, rounded to the nearest 0.1 meter. ADDRESSES Unincorporated Areas of Nowata County Maps are... Communities affected elevation above ground [caret] Elevation in meters (MSL) Modified St. Lucie County...

77 FR 3625 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-01-25

... feet above ground [caret] Elevation in meters (MSL) Modified City of Baltimore, Maryland Docket No... Sea Level, rounded to the nearest 0.1 meter. ADDRESSES City of Baltimore Maps are available for... Depth in feet Communities affected elevation above ground [caret] Elevation in meters (MSL) Modified...

78 FR 32579 - Airworthiness Directives; Bombardier, Inc. Airplanes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-31

... elevator control system. Investigation revealed that, the increase in the elevator breakout force induced by the introduction of a new elevator centering mechanism, in combination with the existing [[Page... behaviors of the elevator control system. This proposed AD would require repetitive replacement of the...

Global variation in elevational diversity patterns

Treesearch

Qinfeng Guo; Douglas A. Kelt; Zhongyu Sun; Hongxiao Liu; Liangjun Hu; Hai Ren; Jun We

2013-01-01

While horizontal gradients of biodiversity have been examined extensively in the past, vertical diversity gradients (elevation, water depth) are attracting increasing attention. We compiled data from 443 elevational gradients involving diverse organisms worldwide to investigate how elevational diversity patterns may vary between the Northern and Southern hemispheres...

10. Cartway from Collom Street looking south showing west elevation ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Cartway from Collom Street looking south showing west elevation of Building L (on left), north elevation of Building J, and east elevation of Building M (on right). - Daniel F. Waters Germantown Dye Works, 37-55 East Wister Street, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

Reduced plant nutrition under elevated CO2 depresses the immunocompetence of cotton bollworm against its endoparasite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yin, Jin; Sun, Yucheng; Ge, Feng

2014-04-01

Estimating the immunocompetence of herbivore insects under elevated CO2 is an important step in understanding the effects of elevated CO2 on crop-herbivore-natural enemy interactions. Current study determined the effect of elevated CO2 on the immune response of Helicoverpa armigera against its parasitoid Microplitis mediator. H. armigera were reared in growth chambers with ambient or elevated CO2, and fed wheat grown in the concentration of CO2 corresponding to their treatment levels. Our results showed that elevated CO2 decreases the nutritional quality of wheat, and reduces the total hemocyte counts and impairs the capacity of hemocyte spreading of hemolymph of cotton bollworm larvae, fed wheat grown in the elevated CO2, against its parasitoid; however, this effect was insufficient to change the development and parasitism traits of M. mediator. Our results suggested that lower plant nutritional quality under elevated CO2 could decrease the immune response of herbivorous insects against their parasitoid natural enemies.

The Dengue Virus Mosquito Vector Aedes aegypti at High Elevation in México

PubMed Central

Lozano-Fuentes, Saul; Hayden, Mary H.; Welsh-Rodriguez, Carlos; Ochoa-Martinez, Carolina; Tapia-Santos, Berenice; Kobylinski, Kevin C.; Uejio, Christopher K.; Zielinski-Gutierrez, Emily; Monache, Luca Delle; Monaghan, Andrew J.; Steinhoff, Daniel F.; Eisen, Lars

2012-01-01

México has cities (e.g., México City and Puebla City) located at elevations > 2,000 m and above the elevation ceiling below which local climates allow the dengue virus mosquito vector Aedes aegypti to proliferate. Climate warming could raise this ceiling and place high-elevation cities at risk for dengue virus transmission. To assess the elevation ceiling for Ae. aegypti and determine the potential for using weather/climate parameters to predict mosquito abundance, we surveyed 12 communities along an elevation/climate gradient from Veracruz City (sea level) to Puebla City (∼2,100 m). Ae. aegypti was commonly encountered up to 1,700 m and present but rare from 1,700 to 2,130 m. This finding extends the known elevation range in México by > 300 m. Mosquito abundance was correlated with weather parameters, including temperature indices. Potential larval development sites were abundant in Puebla City and other high-elevation communities, suggesting that Ae. aegypti could proliferate should the climate become warmer. PMID:22987656

[The expression of p53, MDM2 and Ref1 gene in cultured retina neurons of SD rats treated with vitamin B1 and/or elevated pressure].

PubMed

Yang, Zhikuan; Ge, Jian; Yin, Wei; Shen, Huangxuan; Liu, Haiquan; Guo, Yan

2004-12-01

To investigate the expression of p53, MDM2 and Ref1 gene in cultured retina neurons of SD rats treated with Vitamin B1 and (or) elevated pressure. The retinal neuron of postnatal SD rats were cultured in vivo, the elevated pressure was produced after 7 days, and the total RNA was extracted after another 2 days, expression of p53, MDM2 and Ref1 gene were analyzed with RT-PCR. The expression level of p53 and MDM2 gene were increased in elevated pressure group, normal with Ref1 gene expression. But the expression of p53 and MDM2 gene were decreased significantly in elevated pressure group treated with vitamine B1 compare to the elevated group. Apoptosis seem to be a mechanism of cell death in retinal neurons of SD rats with elevated pressure.Vitamine B1 have protect effects against elevated pressure.

elevatr: Access Elevation Data from Various APIs | Science ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Several web services are available that provide access to elevation data. This package provides access to several of those services and returns elevation data either as a SpatialPointsDataFrame from point elevation services or as a raster object from raster elevation services. Currently, the package supports access to the Mapzen Elevation Service, Mapzen Terrain Service, and the USGS Elevation Point Query Service. The R language for statistical computing is increasingly used for spatial data analysis . This R package, elevatr, is in response to this and provides access to elevation data from various sources directly in R. The impact of `elevatr` is that it will 1) facilitate spatial analysis in R by providing access to foundational dataset for many types of analyses (e.g. hydrology, limnology) 2) open up a new set of users and uses for APIs widely used outside of R, and 3) provide an excellent example federal open source development as promoted by the Federal Source Code Policy (https://sourcecode.cio.gov/).

Effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on phytoplankton community biomass, species composition and photosynthesis during an experimentally induced autumn bloom in the western English Channel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keys, Matthew; Tilstone, Gavin; Findlay, Helen S.; Widdicombe, Claire E.; Lawson, Tracy

2018-05-01

The combined effects of elevated pCO2 and temperature were investigated during an experimentally induced autumn phytoplankton bloom in vitro sampled from the western English Channel (WEC). A full factorial 36-day microcosm experiment was conducted under year 2100 predicted temperature (+4.5 °C) and pCO2 levels (800 µatm). Over the experimental period total phytoplankton biomass was significantly influenced by elevated pCO2. At the end of the experiment, biomass increased 6.5-fold under elevated pCO2 and 4.6-fold under elevated temperature relative to the ambient control. By contrast, the combined influence of elevated pCO2 and temperature had little effect on biomass relative to the control. Throughout the experiment in all treatments and in the control, the phytoplankton community structure shifted from dinoflagellates to nanophytoplankton . At the end of the experiment, under elevated pCO2 nanophytoplankton contributed 90 % of community biomass and was dominated by Phaeocystis spp. Under elevated temperature, nanophytoplankton comprised 85 % of the community biomass and was dominated by smaller nanoflagellates. In the control, larger nanoflagellates dominated whilst the smallest nanophytoplankton contribution was observed under combined elevated pCO2 and temperature ( ˜ 40 %). Under elevated pCO2, temperature and in the control there was a significant decrease in dinoflagellate biomass. Under the combined effects of elevated pCO2 and temperature, dinoflagellate biomass increased and was dominated by the harmful algal bloom (HAB) species, Prorocentrum cordatum. At the end of the experiment, chlorophyll a (Chl a) normalised maximum photosynthetic rates (PBm) increased > 6-fold under elevated pCO2 and > 3-fold under elevated temperature while no effect on PBm was observed when pCO2 and temperature were elevated simultaneously. The results suggest that future increases in temperature and pCO2 simultaneously do not appear to influence coastal phytoplankton productivity but significantly influence community composition during autumn in the WEC.

Differences in symptoms, first medical contact and pre-hospital delay times between patients with ST- and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

PubMed

Ängerud, Karin H; Sederholm Lawesson, Sofia; Isaksson, Rose-Marie; Thylén, Ingela; Swahn, Eva

2017-11-01

In ST-elevation myocardial infarction, time to reperfusion is crucial for the prognosis. Symptom presentation in myocardial infarction influences pre-hospital delay times but studies about differences in symptoms between patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction are sparse and inconclusive. The aim was to compare symptoms, first medical contact and pre-hospital delay times in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction. This multicentre, observational study included 694 myocardial infarction patients from five hospitals. The patients filled in a questionnaire about their pre-hospital experiences within 24 h of hospital admittance. Chest pain was the most common symptom in ST-elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (88.7 vs 87.0%, p=0.56). Patients with cold sweat (odds ratio 3.61, 95% confidence interval 2.29-5.70), jaw pain (odds ratio 2.41, 95% confidence interval 1.04-5.58), and nausea (odds ratio 1.70, 95% confidence interval 1.01-2.87) were more likely to present with ST-elevation myocardial infarction, whereas the opposite was true for symptoms that come and go (odds ratio 0.58, 95% confidence interval 0.38-0.90) or anxiety (odds ratio 0.52, 95% confidence interval 0.29-0.92). Use of emergency medical services was higher among patients admitted with ST-elevation myocardial infarction. The pre-hospital delay time from symptom onset to first medical contact was significantly longer in non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (2:05 h vs 1:10 h, p=0.001). Patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction differed from those with non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction regarding symptom presentation, ambulance utilisation and pre-hospital delay times. This knowledge is important to be aware of for all healthcare personnel and the general public especially in order to recognise symptoms suggestive of ST-elevation myocardial infarction and when to decide if there is a need for an ambulance.

ECG Criteria to Differentiate Between Takotsubo (Stress) Cardiomyopathy and Myocardial Infarction.

PubMed

Frangieh, Antonio H; Obeid, Slayman; Ghadri, Jelena-Rima; Imori, Yoichi; D'Ascenzo, Fabrizio; Kovac, Marc; Ruschitzka, Frank; Lüscher, Thomas F; Duru, Firat; Templin, Christian

2016-06-13

ECG criteria differentiating Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) from mainly anterior myocardial infarction (MI) have been suggested; however, this was in small patient populations. Twelve-lead admission ECGs of consecutive 200 TTC and 200 MI patients were compared in dichotomized groups based on the presence or absence of ST-elevation MI (STEMI versus STE-TTC and non-ST elevation MI versus non ST-elevation-TTC). When comparing STEMI and STE-TTC, ST-elevation in -aVR was characteristic of STE-TTC with a sensitivity/specificity of 43% and 95%, positive predictive value (PPV) 91%, and a negative predictive value (NPV) 62% (P<0.001); when ST-elevation in -aVR is accompanied by ST-elevation in inferior leads, sensitivity/specificity were 14% and 98% (PPV was 89% and NPV 52%) (P=0.001), and 12% and 100% when associated with ST-elevation in anteroseptal leads (PPV 100%, NPV 52%) (P<0.001). On the other hand, STEMI was characterized by ST-elevation in aVR (sensitivity/specificity of 31% and 95% P<0.001, PPV 85% and NPV 59%) and ST-depression in V2-V3-V4 (sensitivity/specificity of 24% and 100% P<0.001, PPV 100% and NPV 76%). When comparing non-ST elevation MI and non ST-elevation-TTC, T-inversion in leads I-aVL-V5-V6 had a sensitivity/specificity of 17% and 97% for non ST-elevation-TTC (PPV 83% and NPV 55%) (P<0.001), and ST-elevation in -aVR with T-inversion in any lead was also specific for non ST-elevation-TTC (sensitivity/specificity of 8% and 100%, PPV 100% and NPV 53%) (P=0.006). In non-ST elevation MI patients, the presence of ST-depression in V2-V3 was specific (sensitivity/specificity of 11% and 99%, PPV 91% and NPV 51%) (P=0.01). ECG on admission can differentiate between TTC and acute MI, with high specificity and positive predictive value. URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT01947621. © 2016 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart Association, Inc., by Wiley Blackwell.

Experimental and analytical transonic flutter characteristics of a geared-elevator configuration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruhlin, C. L.; Doggett, R. V., Jr.; Gregory, R. A.

1980-01-01

The flutter model represented the aft fuselage and empennage of a proposed supersonic transport airplane and had an all movable horizontal tail with a geared elevator. It was tested mounted from a sting in the transonic dynamics tunnel. Symmetric flutter boundaries were determined experimentally at Mach numbers from 0.7 to 1.14 for a geared elevator configuration (gear ratio of 2.8 to 1.0) and an ungeared elevator configuration (gear ratio of 1.0 to 1.0). Gearing the elevator increased the experimental flutter dynamic pressures about 20 percent. Flutter calculations were made for the geared elevator configuration by using two analytical methods based on subsonic lifting surface theory. Both methods analyzed the stabilizer and elevator as a single, deforming surface, but one method also allowed the elevator to be analyzed as hinged from the stabilizer. All analyses predicted lower flutter dynamic pressures than experiment with best agreement (within 12 percent) for the hinged elevator method. Considering the model as mounted from a flexible rather than rigid sting in the analyses, had only a slight effect on the flutter results but was significant in that a sting related vibration mode was identified as a potentially flutter critical mode.

Critical Technologies for the Development of Future Space Elevator Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smitherman, David V., Jr.

2005-01-01

A space elevator is a tether structure extending through geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) to the surface of the earth. Its center of mass is in GEO such that it orbits the earth in sync with the earth s rotation. In 2004 and 2005, the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the Institute for Scientific Research, Inc. worked under a cooperative agreement to research the feasibility of space elevator systems, and to advance the critical technologies required for the future development of space elevators for earth to orbit transportation. The discovery of carbon nanotubes in the early 1990's was the first indication that it might be possible to develop materials strong enough to make space elevator construction feasible. This report presents an overview of some of the latest NASA sponsored research on space elevator design, and the systems and materials that will be required to make space elevator construction possible. In conclusion, the most critical technology for earth-based space elevators is the successful development of ultra high strength carbon nanotube reinforced composites for ribbon construction in the 1OOGPa range. In addition, many intermediate technology goals and demonstration missions for the space elevator can provide significant advancements to other spaceflight and terrestrial applications.

2. Building 22 south elevation oblique. Ghost of Building 22A ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. Building 22 south elevation oblique. Ghost of Building 22A visible on south elevation. South elevation of Building 22A in foreground. View looking NW. - John & James Dobson Carpet Mill (West Parcel), Building No. 22, 4041-4055 Ridge Avenue, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

49 CFR 172.325 - Elevated temperature materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 49 Transportation 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Elevated temperature materials. 172.325 Section... REQUIREMENTS, AND SECURITY PLANS Marking § 172.325 Elevated temperature materials. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, a bulk packaging containing an elevated temperature material must be marked...

49 CFR 172.325 - Elevated temperature materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 49 Transportation 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Elevated temperature materials. 172.325 Section... REQUIREMENTS, AND SECURITY PLANS Marking § 172.325 Elevated temperature materials. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, a bulk packaging containing an elevated temperature material must be marked...

The oscillating wing with aerodynamically balanced elevator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kussner, H G; Schwartz, I

1941-01-01

The two-dimensional problem of the oscillating wing with aerodynamically balanced elevator is treated in the manner that the wing is replaced by a plate with bends and stages and the airfoil section by a mean line consisting of one or more straights. The computed formulas and tables permit, on these premises, the prediction of the pressure distribution and of the aerodynamic reactions of oscillating elevators and tabs with any position of elevator hinge in respect to elevator leading edge.

Navy Shipboard Cargo and Weapons Elevator Controller and Sensor Subsystem Problem Analysis.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-12-24

safe operation, and standardization. The conclusion of the review was that elevator manufact - urers in general have motives in design and construction...controller. Two days are spent on the elevator theory and the rest in hands-on training and trouble-shooting bad cards. There is also a 26-week...was spent on the two computer con- trolled elevators than on all of the remaining 20 freight, food , and weapons elevators on the ship. Phoenix

Pre-hibernation energy reserves in a temperate anuran, Rana chensinensis, along a relatively fine elevational gradient

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lu, X.; Li, B.; Li, Y.; Ma, X.; Fellers, G.M.

2008-01-01

Temperate anurans have energy substrates in the liver, fat bodies, carcass and gonads; these stores provide support for metabolism and egg production during hibernation, and for breeding activities in spring. This paper compares the energy budget shortly before hibernation among Rana chensinensis populations at elevations of 1400, 1700 and 2000 m along a river in northern China. The larger frogs, regardless of elevation, had relatively heavy storage organs and the masses of nearly all these organs were positively correlated with each other. After controlling for the effect of body size, we found no significant difference in energetic organ mass among different age classes for each of the three populations. There were sexual differences in energy strategy. Males in all populations accumulated greater reserves in liver, fat bodies and carcass than did females. In contrast, females put more energy into their ovaries and oviducts. Frogs from higher elevations tended to have heavier organs than those from lower elevations; however, the pattern did not vary systematically along fine environmental gradients. Mid-elevation R. chensinensis built up significantly more reserves than low-elevation individuals, but were similar to their highland conspecifics. Males from higher elevations tended to have heavier liver and fat bodies; females were similar in liver and ovary mass across all elevations, but formed heavier fat bodies, oviducts and somatic tissue at higher elevation sites.

Dissociative phenomena in congenital monocular elevation deficiency.

PubMed

Olson, R J; Scott, W E

1998-04-01

Monocular elevation deficiency is characterized by unilateral limitation of elevation in both adduction and abduction and is usually present at birth. Dissociative phenomena such as dissociated vertical deviation are well recognized in association with conditions such as congenital esotropia but much less so in association with conditions such as congenital monocular elevation deficiency. All 129 patients given the diagnosis of monocular elevation deficiency or double elevator palsy in the Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus Clinic at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics between 1971 and 1995 were reviewed. After those with history of trauma, myasthenia gravis, thyroid eye disease, orbital lesions, Brown syndrome, or monocular elevation deficiency with acquired onset were excluded, 31 patients with congenital monocular elevation deficiency remained for retrospective study. First diagnosed at median age 2.6 years (although all were noted by parents at less than 6 months of age) with mean follow-up of 5.0 years (up to 15.5 years), 9 of 31 (29%) developed dissociated vertical deviation in the eye with monocular elevation deficiency, all of whom had undergone strabismus surgery 0 to 9.7 years previously (mean 3.5 years). Those who developed dissociated vertical deviation were generally younger, were followed up longer, and had more accompanying horizontal strabismus than did those who did not develop dissociated vertical deviation. The results did not reach significance. The current study demonstrates that dissociated vertical deviation occurs in association with monocular elevation deficiency.

Physiological Limits along an Elevational Gradient in a Radiation of Montane Ground Beetles

PubMed Central

Slatyer, Rachel A.; Schoville, Sean D.

2016-01-01

A central challenge in ecology and biogeography is to determine the extent to which physiological constraints govern the geographic ranges of species along environmental gradients. This study tests the hypothesis that temperature and desiccation tolerance are associated with the elevational ranges of 12 ground beetle species (genus Nebria) occurring on Mt. Rainier, Washington, U.S.A. Species from higher elevations did not have greater cold tolerance limits than lower-elevation species (all species ranged from -3.5 to -4.1°C), despite a steep decline in minimum temperature with elevation. Although heat tolerance limits varied among species (from 32.0 to 37.0°C), this variation was not generally associated with the relative elevational range of a species. Temperature gradients and acute thermal tolerance do not support the hypothesis that physiological constraints drive species turnover with elevation. Measurements of intraspecific variation in thermal tolerance limits were not significant for individuals taken at different elevations on Mt. Rainier, or from other mountains in Washington and Oregon. Desiccation resistance was also not associated with a species’ elevational distribution. Our combined results contrast with previously-detected latitudinal gradients in acute physiological limits among insects and suggest that other processes such as chronic thermal stress or biotic interactions might be more important in constraining elevational distributions in this system. PMID:27043311

Warming and pCO2 effects on Florida stone crab larvae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gravinese, Philip M.; Enochs, Ian C.; Manzello, Derek P.; van Woesik, Robert

2018-05-01

Greenhouse gas emissions are increasing ocean temperatures and the partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2), resulting in more acidic waters. It is presently unknown how elevated temperature and pCO2 will influence the early life history stages of the majority of marine coastal species. We investigated the combined effect of elevated temperature (30 °C control and 32 °C treatment) and elevated pCO2 (450 μatm control and 1100 μatm treatment) on the (i) growth, (ii) survival, (iii) condition, and (iv) morphology of larvae of the commercially important Florida stone crab, Menippe mercenaria. At elevated temperature, larvae exhibited a significantly shorter molt stage, and elevated pCO2 caused stage-V larvae to delay metamorphosis to post-larvae. On average, elevated pCO2 resulted in a 37% decrease in survivorship relative to the control; however the effect of elevated temperature reduced larval survivorship by 71%. Exposure to both elevated temperature and pCO2 reduced larval survivorship by 80% relative to the control. Despite this, no significant differences were detected in the condition or morphology of stone crab larvae when subjected to elevated temperature and pCO2 treatments. Although elevated pCO2 could result in a reduction in larval supply, future increases in seawater temperatures are even more likely to threaten the future sustainability of the stone-crab fishery.

Mortality associated with bilirubin levels in insurance applicants.

PubMed

Fulks, Michael; Stout, Robert L; Dolan, Vera F

2009-01-01

Determine the relationship between bilirubin levels with and without other liver function test (LFT) elevations and relative mortality in life insurance applicants. By use of the Social Security Death Master File mortality was determined in 1,905,664 insurance applicants for whom blood samples were submitted to the Clinical Reference Laboratory. There were 50,174 deaths observed in this study population. Results were stratified by 3 age/sex groups: females, age <60; males, age <60; and all, age 60+. The median follow-up was 12 years. Relative mortality increased as bilirubin decreased below bilirubin levels seen for the middle 50% of the population. The known association of smoking with lower bilirubin values explained only part of the additional elevated risk at low bilirubin levels. In the absence of other LFT elevations, relative mortality remained unchanged as bilirubin increased beyond levels seen for the middle 50% of the population. When a bilirubin elevation was combined with other LFT elevations, mortality further increased only at the highest elevations of other LFTs, seen only in <2.5% of applicants. Isolated elevations of bilirubin in this healthy screening population were not associated with excess mortality but values below the midpoint were. Other investigations have suggested a cardiovascular cause may underlie the excess mortality associated with low bilirubin. In association with other LFT elevations, bilirubin elevation further increases the mortality risk only at the highest elevations of other LFTs.

Topogrid Derived 10 Meter Resolution Digital Elevation Model of Charleston, and Parts of Berkeley, Colleton, Dorchester and Georgetown Counties, South Carolina

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chirico, Peter G.

2005-01-01

EXPLANATION The purpose of developing a new 10m resolution digital elevation model (DEM) of the Charleston Region was to more accurately depict geologic structure, surfical geology, and landforms of the Charleston County Region. Previously, many areas northeast and southwest of Charleston were originally mapped with a 20 foot contour interval. As a result, large areas within the National Elevation Dataset (NED) depict flat terraced topography where there was a lack of higher resolution elevation data. To overcome these data voids, the new DEM is supplemented with additional elevation data and break-lines derived from aerial photography and topographic maps. The resultant DEM is stored as a raster grid at uniform 10m horizontal resolution. The elevation model contained in this publication was prodcued utilizing the ANUDEM algorthim. ANUDEM allows for the inclusion of contours, streams, rivers, lake and water body polygons as well as spot height data to control the development of the elevation model. A preliminary statistical analysis using over 788 vertical elevation check points, primarily located in the northeastern part of the study area, derived from USGS 7.5 Minute Topographic maps reveals that the final DEM, has a vertical accuracy of ?3.27 meters. A table listing the elevation comparison between the elevation check points and the final DEM is provided.

Distribution pattern of reptiles along an eastern Himalayan elevation gradient, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chettri, Basundhara; Bhupathy, Subramanian; Acharya, Bhoj Kumar

2010-01-01

We examined the spatial distribution pattern of reptiles in an eastern Himalayan elevation gradient. The factors governing the distribution have been assessed with emphasis on the mid-domain effect. We surveyed reptiles along the elevation gradient (300-4800 m) of the Teesta valley in Sikkim, Eastern Himalaya, India using time constrained visual encounter survey. A total of 42 species of reptiles were observed during the study, and the species richness peaked at 500-1000 m with no species beyond 3000 m. The observed pattern was consistent with estimated richness, both showing significant negative relation with elevation. Lizards showed a linear decline with elevation, whereas snakes followed a non-linear relation with peak at 500-1000 m. Observed species richness deviated significantly from that predicted by a mid-domain null model. The regression between empirical and simulated richness was not significant for total reptiles as well as lizards and snakes separately. Most species distributed in the high elevation extended towards lower elevation, but low elevation species (around 50%) were restricted below 1000 m. Deviation of empirical from predicted richness indicates that the distributions of reptile species were least governed by geographic hard boundaries. Climatic factors especially temperature explained much variation of reptiles along the Himalayan elevation gradient. Most reptiles were narrowly distributed, especially those found in low elevation indicating the importance of tropical low-land forests in the conservation of reptiles in Eastern Himalayas.

Elevated [CO2] does not ameliorate the negative effects of elevated temperature on drought-induced mortality in Eucalyptus radiata seedlings.

PubMed

Duan, Honglang; Duursma, Remko A; Huang, Guomin; Smith, Renee A; Choat, Brendan; O'Grady, Anthony P; Tissue, David T

2014-07-01

It has been reported that elevated temperature accelerates the time-to-mortality in plants exposed to prolonged drought, while elevated [CO(2)] acts as a mitigating factor because it can reduce stomatal conductance and thereby reduce water loss. We examined the interactive effects of elevated [CO(2)] and temperature on the inter-dependent carbon and hydraulic characteristics associated with drought-induced mortality in Eucalyptus radiata seedlings grown in two [CO(2)] (400 and 640 μL L(-1)) and two temperature (ambient and ambient +4 °C) treatments. Seedlings were exposed to two controlled drying and rewatering cycles, and then water was withheld until plants died. The extent of xylem cavitation was assessed as loss of stem hydraulic conductivity. Elevated temperature triggered more rapid mortality than ambient temperature through hydraulic failure, and was associated with larger water use, increased drought sensitivities of gas exchange traits and earlier occurrence of xylem cavitation. Elevated [CO(2)] had a negligible effect on seedling response to drought, and did not ameliorate the negative effects of elevated temperature on drought. Our findings suggest that elevated temperature and consequent higher vapour pressure deficit, but not elevated [CO(2)], may be the primary contributors to drought-induced seedling mortality under future climates. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Elevational Ranges of Montane Birds and Deforestation in the Western Andes of Colombia.

PubMed

Ocampo-Peñuela, Natalia; Pimm, Stuart L

2015-01-01

Deforestation causes habitat loss, fragmentation, degradation, and can ultimately cause extinction of the remnant species. Tropical montane birds face these threats with the added natural vulnerability of narrower elevational ranges and higher specialization than lowland species. Recent studies assess the impact of present and future global climate change on species' ranges, but only a few of these evaluate the potentially confounding effect of lowland deforestation on species elevational distributions. In the Western Andes of Colombia, an important biodiversity hotspot, we evaluated the effects of deforestation on the elevational ranges of montane birds along altitudinal transects. Using point counts and mist-nets, we surveyed six altitudinal transects spanning 2200 to 2800 m. Three transects were forested from 2200 to 2800 m, and three were partially deforested with forest cover only above 2400 m. We compared abundance-weighted mean elevation, minimum elevation, and elevational range width. In addition to analysing the effect of deforestation on 134 species, we tested its impact within trophic guilds and habitat preference groups. Abundance-weighted mean and minimum elevations were not significantly different between forested and partially deforested transects. Range width was marginally different: as expected, ranges were larger in forested transects. Species in different trophic guilds and habitat preference categories showed different trends. These results suggest that deforestation may affect species' elevational ranges, even within the forest that remains. Climate change will likely exacerbate harmful impacts of deforestation on species' elevational distributions. Future conservation strategies need to account for this by protecting connected forest tracts across a wide range of elevations.

Elevational Ranges of Montane Birds and Deforestation in the Western Andes of Colombia

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Deforestation causes habitat loss, fragmentation, degradation, and can ultimately cause extinction of the remnant species. Tropical montane birds face these threats with the added natural vulnerability of narrower elevational ranges and higher specialization than lowland species. Recent studies assess the impact of present and future global climate change on species’ ranges, but only a few of these evaluate the potentially confounding effect of lowland deforestation on species elevational distributions. In the Western Andes of Colombia, an important biodiversity hotspot, we evaluated the effects of deforestation on the elevational ranges of montane birds along altitudinal transects. Using point counts and mist-nets, we surveyed six altitudinal transects spanning 2200 to 2800m. Three transects were forested from 2200 to 2800m, and three were partially deforested with forest cover only above 2400m. We compared abundance-weighted mean elevation, minimum elevation, and elevational range width. In addition to analysing the effect of deforestation on 134 species, we tested its impact within trophic guilds and habitat preference groups. Abundance-weighted mean and minimum elevations were not significantly different between forested and partially deforested transects. Range width was marginally different: as expected, ranges were larger in forested transects. Species in different trophic guilds and habitat preference categories showed different trends. These results suggest that deforestation may affect species’ elevational ranges, even within the forest that remains. Climate change will likely exacerbate harmful impacts of deforestation on species’ elevational distributions. Future conservation strategies need to account for this by protecting connected forest tracts across a wide range of elevations. PMID:26641477

Short-Term Moderately Elevated Intraocular Pressure Is Associated With Elevated Scotopic Electroretinogram Responses

PubMed Central

Choh, Vivian; Gurdita, Akshay; Tan, Bingyao; Prasad, Ratna C.; Bizheva, Kostadinka; Joos, Karen M.

2016-01-01

Purpose Moderately elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) is a risk factor for open-angle glaucoma. Some patients suffer glaucoma despite clinically measured normal IOPs. Fluctuations in IOP may have a significant role since IOPs are higher during sleep and inversion activities. Controlled transient elevations of IOPs in rats over time lead to optic nerve structural changes that are similar to the early changes observed in constant chronic models of glaucoma. Because early intervention decreases glaucoma progression, this study was done to determine if early physiological changes to the retina could be detected with noninvasive electrophysiological and optical imaging tests during moderately elevated IOP. Methods Intraocular pressures were raised to moderately high levels (35 mm Hg) in one eye of Sprague-Dawley rats while the other (control) eye was untreated. One group of rats underwent scotopic threshold response (STR) and electroretinogram (ERG) testing, while another 3 groups underwent optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging, Western blot, or histologic evaluation. Results The amplitudes of the STR and ERG responses in eyes with moderately elevated IOPs were enhanced compared to the values before IOP elevation, and compared to untreated contralateral eyes. Structural changes to the optic nerve also occurred during IOP elevation. Conclusions Although ischemic IOP elevations are well-known to globally reduce components of the scotopic ERG, acute elevation in rats to levels often observed in untreated glaucoma patients caused an increase in these parameters. Further exploration of these phenomena may be helpful in better understanding the mechanisms mediating early retinal changes during fluctuating or chronically elevated IOP. PMID:27100161

Wetland Accretion Rate Model of Ecosystem Resilience (WARMER) and its application to habitat sustainability for endangered species in the San Francisco Estuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Swanson, Kathleen M.; Drexler, Judith Z.; Schoellhamer, David H.; Thorne, Karen M.; Casazza, Michael L.; Overton, Cory T.; Callaway, John C.; Takekawa, John Y.

2014-01-01

Salt marsh faunas are constrained by specific habitat requirements for marsh elevation relative to sea level and tidal range. As sea level rises, changes in relative elevation of the marsh plain will have differing impacts on the availability of habitat for marsh obligate species. The Wetland Accretion Rate Model for Ecosystem Resilience (WARMER) is a 1-D model of elevation that incorporates both biological and physical processes of vertical marsh accretion. Here, we use WARMER to evaluate changes in marsh surface elevation and the impact of these elevation changes on marsh habitat for specific species of concern. Model results were compared to elevation-based habitat criteria developed for marsh vegetation, the endangered California clapper rail (Rallus longirostris obsoletus), and the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys raviventris) to determine the response of marsh habitat for each species to predicted >1-m sea-level rise by 2100. Feedback between vertical accretion mechanisms and elevation reduced the effect of initial elevation in the modeled scenarios. Elevation decreased nonlinearly with larger changes in elevation during the latter half of the century when the rate of sea-level rise increased. Model scenarios indicated that changes in elevation will degrade habitat quality within salt marshes in the San Francisco Estuary, and degradation will accelerate in the latter half of the century as the rate of sea-level rise accelerates. A sensitivity analysis of the model results showed that inorganic sediment accumulation and the rate of sea-level rise had the greatest influence over salt marsh sustainability.

Hydrologic connectivity: Quantitative assessments of hydrologic-enforced drainage structures in an elevation model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Poppenga, Sandra K.; Worstell, Bruce B.

2016-01-01

Elevation data derived from light detection and ranging present challenges for hydrologic modeling as the elevation surface includes bridge decks and elevated road features overlaying culvert drainage structures. In reality, water is carried through these structures; however, in the elevation surface these features impede modeled overland surface flow. Thus, a hydrologically-enforced elevation surface is needed for hydrodynamic modeling. In the Delaware River Basin, hydrologic-enforcement techniques were used to modify elevations to simulate how constructed drainage structures allow overland surface flow. By calculating residuals between unfilled and filled elevation surfaces, artificially pooled depressions that formed upstream of constructed drainage structure features were defined, and elevation values were adjusted by generating transects at the location of the drainage structures. An assessment of each hydrologically-enforced drainage structure was conducted using field-surveyed culvert and bridge coordinates obtained from numerous public agencies, but it was discovered the disparate drainage structure datasets were not comprehensive enough to assess all remotely located depressions in need of hydrologic-enforcement. Alternatively, orthoimagery was interpreted to define drainage structures near each depression, and these locations were used as reference points for a quantitative hydrologic-enforcement assessment. The orthoimagery-interpreted reference points resulted in a larger corresponding sample size than the assessment between hydrologic-enforced transects and field-surveyed data. This assessment demonstrates the viability of rules-based hydrologic-enforcement that is needed to achieve hydrologic connectivity, which is valuable for hydrodynamic models in sensitive coastal regions. Hydrologic-enforced elevation data are also essential for merging with topographic/bathymetric elevation data that extend over vulnerable urbanized areas and dynamic coastal regions.

Seasonal Dynamics of Mobile Carbon Supply in Quercus aquifolioides at the Upper Elevational Limit

PubMed Central

Zhu, Wan-Ze; Cao, Min; Wang, San-Gen; Xiao, Wen-Fan; Li, Mai-He

2012-01-01

Many studies have tried to explain the physiological mechanisms of the alpine treeline phenomenon, but the debate on the alpine treeline formation remains controversial due to opposite results from different studies. The present study explored the carbon-physiology of an alpine shrub species (Quercus aquifolioides) grown at its upper elevational limit compared to lower elevations, to test whether the elevational limit of alpine shrubs (<3 m in height) are determined by carbon limitation or growth limitation. We studied the seasonal variations in non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) and its pool size in Q. aquifolioides grown at 3000 m, 3500 m, and at its elevational limit of 3950 m above sea level (a.s.l.) on Zheduo Mt., SW China. The tissue NSC concentrations along the elevational gradient varied significantly with season, reflecting the season-dependent carbon balance. The NSC levels in tissues were lowest at the beginning of the growing season, indicating that plants used the winter reserve storage for re-growth in the early spring. During the growing season, plants grown at the elevational limit did not show lower NSC concentrations compared to plants at lower elevations, but during the winter season, storage tissues, especially roots, had significantly lower NSC concentrations in plants at the elevational limit compared to lower elevations. The present results suggest the significance of winter reserve in storage tissues, which may determine the winter survival and early-spring re-growth of Q. aquifolioides shrubs at high elevation, leading to the formation of the uppermost distribution limit. This result is consistent with a recent hypothesis for the alpine treeline formation. PMID:22479567

Elevated post-void residual volume in a geriatric post-hip fracture assessment in women-associated factors and risk of mortality.

PubMed

Nuotio, Maria S; Luukkaala, Tiina; Tammela, Teuvo

2018-04-09

Multiple factors contribute to elevated post-void residual urine volumes (PVR), but they may indicate detrusor underactivity (DU), especially in older women. The aim here was to examine factors associated with and prognostic significance of elevated PVR in a geriatric post-hip fracture assessment in a female population. Consecutive female hip fracture patients (n = 409) aged 65 years and older were included. PVR was measured by bladder scanner. PVR of 160 ml or more was deemed elevated. Age-adjusted univariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association of the domains of the comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) with elevated PVR. Cox proportional hazards model was used to determine the age-adjusted association of an elevated PVR with 1-year mortality. Of the patients, 64 (15.6%) had elevated PVR. Having urinary or fecal incontinence, difficulties in physical activities of daily living, malnutrition, poor performance on Timed Up and Go and Elderly Mobility Scale were significantly associated with elevated PVR. Difficulties in instrumental activities of daily living, renal dysfunction, constipation, polypharmacy, nocturia, cognitive impairment and depressive mood were not associated with elevated PVR. Elevated PVR significantly increased the risk of mortality 1 year post hip fracture. Elevated PVR is relatively common in older female hip fracture patients and associated with physical functioning, malnutrition and risk of mortality. Even though a causal relationship cannot be confirmed, the findings may suggest a relationship between DU and physical frailty. PVR deserves to be included in the CGA of frail older patients including women.

14 CFR 23.155 - Elevator control force in maneuvers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Elevator control force in maneuvers. 23.155 Section 23.155 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Controllability and Maneuverability § 23.155 Elevator control force in maneuvers. (a) The elevator control force...

14 CFR 23.155 - Elevator control force in maneuvers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Elevator control force in maneuvers. 23.155 Section 23.155 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Controllability and Maneuverability § 23.155 Elevator control force in maneuvers. (a) The elevator control force...

14 CFR 23.155 - Elevator control force in maneuvers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Elevator control force in maneuvers. 23.155 Section 23.155 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Controllability and Maneuverability § 23.155 Elevator control force in maneuvers. (a) The elevator control force...

14 CFR 23.155 - Elevator control force in maneuvers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Elevator control force in maneuvers. 23.155 Section 23.155 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Controllability and Maneuverability § 23.155 Elevator control force in maneuvers. (a) The elevator control force...

14 CFR 23.155 - Elevator control force in maneuvers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Elevator control force in maneuvers. 23.155 Section 23.155 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Controllability and Maneuverability § 23.155 Elevator control force in maneuvers. (a) The elevator control force...

78 FR 56174 - In-Core Thermocouples at Different Elevations and Radial Positions in Reactor Core

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-12

...-core thermocouples at different elevations and radial positions throughout the reactor core to enable... different elevations and radial positions throughout the reactor core to enable NPP operators to accurately... NPPs with in-core thermocouples at different elevations and radial positions throughout the reactor...

3. N elevation, E wing; 3/4 view of W wing ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

3. N elevation, E wing; 3/4 view of W wing showing E and N elevations; N elevation of Building 69, Plating and Tinning Shop; looking SW. (Ceronie) - Rock Island Arsenal, Building No. 66, Rodman Avenue between Third & Fourth Streets, Rock Island, Rock Island County, IL

Contrasting Decadal-Scale Changes in Elevation and Vegetation in Two Long Island Sound Salt Marshes

EPA Science Inventory

Northeastern US salt marshes face multiple co-stressors, including accelerating rates of relative sea level rise (RSLR), elevated nutrient inputs, and low sediment supplies. In order to evaluate how marsh surface elevations respond to such factors, we used surface elevation table...

29 CFR 1918.87 - Ship's cargo elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 29 Labor 7 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Ship's cargo elevators. 1918.87 Section 1918.87 Labor... (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR LONGSHORING Handling Cargo § 1918.87 Ship's cargo elevators. (a) Safe working load. The safe working loads of ship's cargo elevators shall be determined and followed...

29 CFR 1918.87 - Ship's cargo elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 29 Labor 7 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Ship's cargo elevators. 1918.87 Section 1918.87 Labor... (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR LONGSHORING Handling Cargo § 1918.87 Ship's cargo elevators. (a) Safe working load. The safe working loads of ship's cargo elevators shall be determined and followed...

29 CFR 1918.87 - Ship's cargo elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 29 Labor 7 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Ship's cargo elevators. 1918.87 Section 1918.87 Labor... (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR LONGSHORING Handling Cargo § 1918.87 Ship's cargo elevators. (a) Safe working load. The safe working loads of ship's cargo elevators shall be determined and followed...

29 CFR 1918.87 - Ship's cargo elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 29 Labor 7 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Ship's cargo elevators. 1918.87 Section 1918.87 Labor... (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR LONGSHORING Handling Cargo § 1918.87 Ship's cargo elevators. (a) Safe working load. The safe working loads of ship's cargo elevators shall be determined and followed...

Parenting and Early Adolescent Internalizing: The Importance of Teasing Apart Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Lesley E.; Greenberg, Mark T.

2013-01-01

This community-based study examined differences in parenting quality and parent symptoms for youth in four categories: anxious (elevated anxiety symptoms), depressed (elevated depressive symptoms), comorbid (elevated anxiety and depressive symptoms), and nonelevated (elevations of neither type). Respondents were 976 young adolescents (mean age =…

ELEVATED CO2 AND ELEVATED TEMPERATURE HAVE NO EFFECT ON DOUGLAS-FIR FINE-ROOT DYNAMICS IN NITROGEN-POOR SOIL

EPA Science Inventory

Here, we investigate fine-root production, mortality and standing crop of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) seedlings exposed to elevated atmospheric CO2 and elevated air temperature. We hypothesized that these treatments would increase fine-root production, but that mortality ...

77 FR 45513 - Airworthiness Directives; The Boeing Company Airplanes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-01

... prompted by a report of elevator vibration and bearing swage failures. This proposed AD would require, for... aft attach lugs for the elevator tab control mechanism, and replacement if necessary, and for other... elevator tab control mechanism, which could result in elevator and tab vibration. Consequent structural...

44 CFR 67.3 - Establishment and maintenance of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... MITIGATION National Flood Insurance Program APPEALS FROM PROPOSED FLOOD ELEVATION DETERMINATIONS § 67.3 Establishment and maintenance of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD). The Federal Insurance... of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD). 67.3 Section 67.3 Emergency Management and...

44 CFR 67.3 - Establishment and maintenance of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... MITIGATION National Flood Insurance Program APPEALS FROM PROPOSED FLOOD ELEVATION DETERMINATIONS § 67.3 Establishment and maintenance of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD). The Federal Insurance... of a flood elevation determination docket (FEDD). 67.3 Section 67.3 Emergency Management and...

77 FR 46940 - Airworthiness Directives; Glasflugel Gliders

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-07

... condition as corrosion damage to the elevator control rod that could lead to failure of the elevator control... into the elevator control rod through a control bore hole and resulted in corrosion damage. The investigation concluded as well that the corrosion cannot be detected from outside the elevator control rod...

29 CFR 780.707 - Establishments “commonly recognized” as country elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...” (107 Cong. Rec. (daily ed.) p. 5883). It is also appropriate to consider the characteristics and... distinctions which have been recognized between country elevators and other types of establishments. For... mill elevators, non-elevator-type bulk grain storing establishments, and “flat warehouses” in which...

Elevation-relief ratio, hypsometric integral, and geomorphic area-altitude analysis.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pike, R. J.; Wilson, S. E.

1971-01-01

Mathematical proof establishes identity of hypsometric integral and elevation-relief ratio, two quantitative topographic descriptors developed independently of one another for entirely different purposes. Operationally, values of both measures are in excellent agreement for arbitrarily bounded topographic samples, as well as for low-order fluvial watersheds. By using a point-sampling technique rather than planimetry, elevation-relief ratio (defined as mean elevation minus minimum elevation divided by relief) is calculated manually in about a third of the time required for the hypsometric integral.

Radio frequency elevator for a pulsed positron beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dickmann, Marcel; Mitteneder, Johannes; Kögel, Gottfried; Egger, Werner; Sperr, Peter; Ackermann, Ulrich; Piochacz, Christian; Dollinger, Günther

2016-06-01

An elevator increases the potential energy of a particle beam with respect to ground potential without any alteration of kinetic energy and other beam parameters. This elevator is necessary for the implementation of the Munich Scanning Positron Microscope (SPM) at the intense positron source NEPOMUC at the research reactor FRM II in Munich. The principles of the rf elevator for pure electrostatically guided positrons are described. Measurements of beam quality behind the elevator are reported, which confirm that after the implementation of elevator and SPM at NEPOMUC the SPM can be operated at a considerably improved resolution (~ 0.3 μm) and event rate (~3.7 kHz) compared to the laboratory based β+-source.

An assessment of maintainability of elevator system to improve facilities management knowledge-base

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siti, N. A.; Asmone, A. S.; Chew, M. Y. L.

2018-02-01

Elevator system is a highly specialized machinery that requires technicians that have a wider array of knowledge in maintaining the system to be safe and reliable. While attaining reliable data of elevator malfunction become challenges, this study has filled the gap by gathering the management-maintenance issues and operational defects of elevator system. Forty-three types of operation defects were found and the consequence defects and their possible causes of occurrences were discussed. To respond to the prime challenges of maintaining elevator system provided by the industry players’ perspective, a theoretical framework is established as a recommendation to improve knowledge base of defects in elevator system which comprises good practices, and solutions to rectify each defects found. Hence, this research paper has theoretically improved the knowledge base of maintainability of elevator system and provide meaningful guidelines in practical senses to the industry professionals.

Effects of decadal exposure to interacting elevated CO2 and/or O3 on paper birch (Betula papyrifera) reproduction.

PubMed

Darbah, Joseph N T; Kubiske, Mark E; Nelson, Neil; Oksanen, Elina; Vapaavuori, Elina; Karnosky, David F

2008-10-01

We studied the effects of long-term exposure (nine years) of birch (Betula papyrifera) trees to elevated CO(2) and/or O(3) on reproduction and seedling development at the Aspen FACE (Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment) site in Rhinelander, WI. We found that elevated CO(2) increased both the number of trees that flowered and the quantity of flowers (260% increase in male flower production), increased seed weight, germination rate, and seedling vigor. Elevated O(3) also increased flowering but decreased seed weight and germination rate. In the combination treatment (elevated CO(2)+O(3)) seed weight is decreased (20% reduction) while germination rate was unaffected. The evidence from this study indicates that elevated CO(2) may have a largely positive impact on forest tree reproduction and regeneration while elevated O(3) will likely have a negative impact.

Clutch size declines with elevation in tropical birds

USGS Publications Warehouse

Boyce, A.J.; Freeman, Benjamin G.; Mitchell, Adam E.; Martin, Thomas E.

2015-01-01

Clutch size commonly decreases with increasing elevation among temperate-zone and subtropical songbird species. Tropical songbirds typically lay small clutches, thus the ability to evolve even smaller clutch sizes at higher elevations is unclear and untested. We conducted a comparative phylogenetic analysis using data gathered from the literature to test whether clutch size varied with elevation among forest passerines from three tropical biogeographic regions—the Venezuelan Andes and adjacent lowlands, Malaysian Borneo, and New Guinea. We found a significant negative effect of elevation on variation in clutch size among species. We found the same pattern using field data sampled across elevational gradients in Venezuela and Malaysian Borneo. Field data were not available for New Guinea. Both sets of results demonstrate that tropical montane species across disparate biogeographic realms lay smaller clutches than closely related low-elevation species. The environmental sources of selection underlying this pattern remain uncertain and merit further investigation.

Responses of growth, photosynthesis and VOC emissions of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. Exposure to elevated CO2 and/or elevated O3 in an urban area.

PubMed

Xu, Sheng; Chen, Wei; Huang, Yanqing; He, Xingyuan

2012-03-01

Responses of growth, photosynthesis and emission of volatile organic compounds of Pinus tabulaeformis exposed to elevated CO(2) (700 ppm) and O(3) (80 ppb) were studied in open top chambers. Elevated CO(2) increased growth, but it did not significantly (p > 0.05) affect net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content, the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II, or the effective quantum yield of photosystem II electron transport after 90 d of gas exposure. Elevated O(3) decreased growth (by 42.2% in needle weight and 25.8% in plant height), net photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance after 90 d of exposure, but its negative effects were alleviated by elevated CO(2). Elevated O(3) significantly (p < 0.05) increased the emission rate of volatile organic compounds, which may be a helpful response to protect photosynthetic apparatus against O(3) damage.

Elevated-CO2 Response of Stomata and Its Dependence on Environmental Factors

PubMed Central

Xu, Zhenzhu; Jiang, Yanling; Jia, Bingrui; Zhou, Guangsheng

2016-01-01

Stomata control the flow of gases between plants and the atmosphere. This review is centered on stomatal responses to elevated CO2 concentration and considers other key environmental factors and underlying mechanisms at multiple levels. First, an outline of general responses in stomatal conductance under elevated CO2 is presented. Second, stomatal density response, its development, and the trade-off with leaf growth under elevated CO2 conditions are depicted. Third, the molecular mechanism regulating guard cell movement at elevated CO2 is suggested. Finally, the interactive effects of elevated CO2 with other factors critical to stomatal behavior are reviewed. It may be useful to better understand how stomata respond to elevated CO2 levels while considering other key environmental factors and mechanisms, including molecular mechanism, biochemical processes, and ecophysiological regulation. This understanding may provide profound new insights into how plants cope with climate change. PMID:27242858

Antarctic surface elevation and slope from multi-mission lidar mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutterley, T. C.; Velicogna, I.; Neumann, T.; Markus, T.

2017-12-01

We present integrated estimates of surface elevation change and slope for the Antarctic Ice Sheet from a combination of measurements from the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM), the Land, Vegetation and Ice Sensor (LVIS) and the Ice Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat-1). This technique is a data-driven approach that calculates elevation differentials on a shot-by-shot basis. Our method extends the records of each instrument, increases the overall spatial coverage compared to a single instrument and produces high-quality, integrated maps of surface elevation, surface elevation change and slope. We use our estimates of elevation change to assess the current state of major outlet glaciers in the Bellinghausen Sea, Amundsen Sea and Getz regions of West Antarctica (WAIS). In the Amundsen Sea, we find that thinning rates of Pine Island Glacier have decreased after 2011 while thinning rates of Smith and Kohler glaciers have increased unabated.

Differential response of Aspen and Birch trees to heat stress under elevated carbon dioxide

Treesearch

Joseph N.T. Darbah; Thomas D. Sharkey; Carlo Calfapietra; David F. Karnosky

2010-01-01

The effect of high temperature on photosynthesis of isoprene-emitting (aspen) and non-isoprene-emitting (birch) trees were measured under elevated CO2 and ambient conditions. Aspen trees tolerated heat better than birch trees and elevated CO2 protected photosynthesis of both species against moderate heat stress. Elevated CO...

5. View West. West side and rear elevations of c. ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. View West. West side and rear elevations of c. 1890 first rear addition; partial north rear elevation of c. 1900 side ell addition; and north rear and west side elevation of final rear addition of c. 1940. - Vaughn Chevrolet Building, 101-109 East Main Street, Monongahela, Washington County, PA

Use of elevator instruments when luxating and extracting teeth in dentistry: clinical techniques

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

In dentistry, elevator instruments are used to luxate teeth, and this technique imparts forces to tooth particles that sever the periodontal ligament around tooth roots inside the socket and expand alveolar bone around tooth particles. These effects can result in extraction of the tooth particles or facilitate systematic forceps extraction of the tooth particles. This article presents basic oral surgery techniques for applying elevators to luxate teeth. Determination of the optimal luxation technique requires understanding of the functions of the straight elevator and the Cryer elevator, the concept of purchase points, how the design elements of elevator working ends and tips influence the functionality of an elevator, application of forces to tooth particles, sectioning teeth at furcations, and bone removal to facilitate luxation. The effectiveness of tooth particle luxation is influenced by elevator tip shape and size, the magnitude and the vectors of forces applied to the tooth particle by the tip, and sectioning and bone removal within the operating field. Controlled extraction procedures are facilitated by a dental operating microscope or the magnification of binocular surgical loupes telescopes, combined with co-axial illumination. PMID:28770164

Echolocation with bat buzz emissions: model and biomimetic sonar for elevation estimation.

PubMed

Kuc, Roman

2012-01-01

Just prior to capture the Buzz II emissions of some mouth-emitting bats, such as Eptesicus fuscus, are observed to exhibit spectra having multiple peaks. This paper proposes an echolocation strategy that uses such spectra with energy concentrated in specific frequency bands for determining target elevation. A biomimetic sonar was implemented to produce a tri-modal spectrum by driving a speaker with a signal rich in harmonics. The emission magnitudes at these harmonic frequencies measured as a function of elevation in the zero-azimuth plane form distinct beams. A template was formed from the ratio of the first harmonic and fundamental magnitudes to determine elevation. The elevation estimator exhibited a sub-degree accuracy (SD = 0.4° over a 20° interval centered at the elevation at which these two beams intersect in the zero-azimuth plane. Spectral cues from -40° to +10° elevation allow a qualitative non-linear control of sonar orientation to drive the target to the beam-intersection point where quantitative elevation estimates are available. © 2012 Acoustical Society of America.

Incidence of Intraocular Pressure Elevation following Intravitreal Ranibizumab (Lucentis) for Age-related Macular Degeneration.

PubMed

Reis, Gustavo Msm; Grigg, John; Chua, Brian; Lee, Anne; Lim, Ridia; Higgins, Ralph; Martins, Alessandra; Goldberg, Ivan; Clement, Colin I

2017-01-01

The aim of this article is to evaluate the rate of patients developing sustained elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) after ranibizumab (Lucentis) intravitreal (IVT) injections. This is a retrospective study. Charts of 192 consecutive patients receiving Lucentis for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) were retrospectively reviewed. We enrolled patients with at least two IOP measurements between injections. Elevated IOP was defined as >21 mm Hg with an increase of at least 20% from baseline. Noninjected contralateral eyes of the same patient cohort were used as control. Primary outcome was defined as elevated IOP. Secondary outcomes were presence and type of glaucoma, number of injections, and time to IOP elevation. Elevated IOP occurred at a significantly higher rate in eyes receiving IVT ranibizumab (7.47%; n = 9) compared with control (0.93%; n = 1). Patients with preexisting glaucoma or ocular hypertension (OHT) were more likely to develop elevated IOP after IVT ranibizumab injection. Intravitreal ranibizumab injections are associated with sustained IOP elevation in some eyes. Reis GMSM, Grigg J, Chua B, Lee A, Lim R, Higgins R, Martins A, Goldberg I, Clement CI. The Incidence of Intraocular Pressure Elevation following Intravitreal Ranibizumab (Lucentis) for Age-related Macular Degeneration. J Curr Glaucoma Pract 2017;11(1):3-7.

Growth and wood/bark properties of Abies faxoniana seedlings as affected by elevated CO2.

PubMed

Qiao, Yun-Zhou; Zhang, Yuan-Bin; Wang, Kai-Yun; Wang, Qian; Tian, Qi-Zhuo

2008-03-01

Growth and wood and bark properties of Abies faxoniana seedlings after one year's exposure to elevated CO2 concentration (ambient + 350 (+/- 25) micromol/mol) under two planting densities (28 or 84 plants/m(2)) were investigated in closed-top chambers. Tree height, stem diameter and cross-sectional area, and total biomass were enhanced under elevated CO2 concentration, and reduced under high planting density. Most traits of stem bark were improved under elevated CO2 concentration and reduced under high planting density. Stem wood production was significantly increased in volume under elevated CO2 concentration under both densities, and the stem wood density decreased under elevated CO2 concentration and increased under high planting density. These results suggest that the response of stem wood and bark to elevated CO2 concentration is density dependent. This may be of great importance in a future CO2 enriched world in natural forests where plant density varies considerably. The results also show that the bark/wood ratio in diameter, stem cross-sectional area and dry weight are not proportionally affected by elevated CO2 concentration under the two contrasting planting densities. This indicates that the response magnitude of stem bark and stem wood to elevated CO2 concentration are different but their response directions are the same.

Does a decade of elevated [CO2] affect a desert perennial plant community?

PubMed

Newingham, Beth A; Vanier, Cheryl H; Kelly, Lauren J; Charlet, Therese N; Smith, Stanley D

2014-01-01

Understanding the effects of elevated [CO2 ] on plant community structure is crucial to predicting ecosystem responses to global change. Early predictions suggested that productivity in deserts would increase via enhanced water-use efficiency under elevated [CO2], but the response of intact arid plant communities to elevated [CO2 ] is largely unknown. We measured changes in perennial plant community characteristics (cover, species richness and diversity) after 10 yr of elevated [CO2] exposure in an intact Mojave Desert community at the Nevada Desert Free-Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) Facility. Contrary to expectations, total cover, species richness, and diversity were not affected by elevated [CO2]. Over the course of the experiment, elevated [CO2] had no effect on changes in cover of the evergreen C3 shrub, Larrea tridentata; alleviated decreases in cover of the C4 bunchgrass, Pleuraphis rigida; and slightly reduced the cover of C3 drought-deciduous shrubs. Thus, we generally found no effect of elevated [CO2] on plant communities in this arid ecosystem. Extended drought, slow plant growth rates, and highly episodic germination and recruitment of new individuals explain the lack of strong perennial plant community shifts after a decade of elevated [CO2]. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

Resting metabolic expenditure as a potential source of variation in growth rates of the sagebrush lizard.

PubMed

Sears, Michael W

2005-02-01

Along an elevational gradient on SW Utah, sagebrush lizards (Sceloporus graciosus) exhibit an unexpected pattern of growth. Lizards from a high elevation population grow faster than lizards from two populations at lower elevations despite shorter daily and seasonal activity. Results from a common environment study of growth suggest that the differences in growth are not due to adaptation to local environmental conditions. In this study, I test the hypothesis that higher growth rates in lizards from high elevation may be attributable to reduced resting metabolic expenditure compared to that of lizards from populations at two lower elevations. Resting metabolic rates were measured for individuals from each of the study populations across different times of day and over a broad range of temperatures. Under the same laboratory conditions, field-caught lizards from the high elevation population exhibited lower metabolic rates when compared to lizards from lower elevations. Daily resting metabolic expenditures were calculated using the observed metabolic rates coupled with estimates of daily activity. Daily resting metabolic expenditure was 50% greater for individuals from the two lower elevation populations, which could result in 12.5% more energy that could be potentially allocated to growth for lizards from high elevation. Such energetic savings may be able to explain differences in the patterns of growth observed in nature.

Patterns of oribatid mite species diversity: testing the effects of elevation, area and sampling effort.

PubMed

Mumladze, Levan; Murvanidze, Maka; Maraun, Mark

2017-07-01

Elevational gradients in species diversity and species area relationships are two well established patterns that are not mutually exclusive in space and time. Elevation and area are both considered as good proxies to detect and characterize the patterns of species diversity distribution. However, such studies are hampered by the incomplete biodiversity data available for ecologists, which may affect the pattern perceptions. Using the large dataset of oribatid mite communities sampled in Georgia, we tested the effects of altitude and area on species distribution using various approaches, while explicitly considering the biases from sampling effort. Our results showed that elevation and area are strongly correlated (with increasing absolute elevation, land area decreases) and both have strong linear effects on species diversity distribution when studied separately. Approaches based on multiple regression and direct removal of co-varied factors, indicated that the effect of area can actually override the effect of elevation in describing the oribatid species diversity distribution along with elevation. On the other hand, the bias of sampling proved significant in perception of elevational species richness pattern with less effect on elevational species area relationship. We suggest that the sampling alone may be responsible for patterns observed and thus should be considered in ecological studies when eligible.

Use of prototype two-channel endoscope with elevator enables larger lift-and-snare endoscopic mucosal resection in a porcine model

PubMed Central

Atkinson, Matthew; Chukwumah, Chike; Marks, Jeffrey; Chak, Amitabh

2014-01-01

Background: Flat and depressed lesions are becoming increasingly recognized in the esophagus, stomach, and colon. Various techniques have been described for endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) of these lesions. Aims: To evaluate the efficacy of lift-grasp-cut EMR using a prototype dual-channel forward-viewing endoscope with an instrument elevator in one accessory channel (dual-channel elevator scope) as compared to standard dual-channel endoscopes. Methods: EMR was performed using a lift-grasp-cut technique on normal flat rectosigmoid or gastric mucosa in live porcine models after submucosal injection of 4 mL of saline using a dual-channel elevator scope or a standard dual-channel endoscope. With the dual-channel elevator scope, the elevator was used to attain further lifting of the mucosa. The primary endpoint was size of the EMR specimen and the secondary endpoint was number of complications. Results: Twelve experiments were performed (six gastric and six colonic). Mean specimen diameter was 2.27 cm with the dual-channel elevator scope and 1.34 cm with the dual-channel endoscope (P = 0.018). Two colonic perforations occurred with the dual-channel endoscope, vs no complications with the dual-channel elevator scope. Conclusions: The increased lift of the mucosal epithelium, through use of the dual-channel elevator scope, allows for larger EMR when using a lift-grasp-cut technique. Noting the thin nature of the porcine colonic wall, use of the elevator may also make this technique safer. PMID:24760237

[Correlation of medial compartmental joint line elevation with femorotibial angle correction and clinical function after unicompartmental arthroplasty].

PubMed

Zhang, Zhan-Feng; Wang, Dan; Min, Ji-Kang

2017-04-25

To study the correlation of postoperative femorotibial angle with medial compartmental joint line elevation after unicompartmental arthroplasty(UKA), as well as the correlation of joint line elevation with the clinical function by measuring radiological joint line. A retrospective study of 56 patients from July 2012 to August 2015 was performed. The mean body mass index (BMI) was 23.5 (ranged, 18.3 to 30.1). The standing anteroposterior radiographs of these patients were assessed both pre-and post-operatively, and the knee function was evaluated according to HSS grading. The correlation between postoperative femorotibial angle(FTA) and joint line elevation was analyzed as well as the correlation between joint line elevation and the clinical function. The mean medial joint line elevation was (2.2±2.0) mm(ranged, -3.3 to 7.0 mm), and the mean FTA correction was (2.3±3.0)°(ranged, -4.5° to 9.6°). The mean follow-up period was 12.2 months. There was a significant correlation between in joint line elevation and FTA correction( P <0.05), while there was no significant correlation between joint line elevation and the clinical function( P >0.05). There was a significant correlation between medial compartmental joint line elevation and FTA correction after UKA, and the proximal tibial osteotomy was critical during the procedure. There was no significant correlation between joint line elevation and the clinical function, which may be related to the design of UKA prosthesis.

Microbes on mountainsides: Contrasting elevational patterns of bacterial and plant diversity

PubMed Central

Bryant, Jessica A.; Lamanna, Christine; Morlon, Hélène; Kerkhoff, Andrew J.; Enquist, Brian J.; Green, Jessica L.

2008-01-01

The study of elevational diversity gradients dates back to the foundation of biogeography. Although elevational patterns of plant and animal diversity have been studied for centuries, such patterns have not been reported for microorganisms and remain poorly understood. Here, in an effort to assess the generality of elevational diversity patterns, we examined soil bacterial and plant diversity along an elevation gradient. To gain insight into the forces that structure these patterns, we adopted a multifaceted approach to incorporate information about the structure, diversity, and spatial turnover of montane communities in a phylogenetic context. We found that observed patterns of plant and bacterial diversity were fundamentally different. While bacterial taxon richness and phylogenetic diversity decreased monotonically from the lowest to highest elevations, plants followed a unimodal pattern, with a peak in richness and phylogenetic diversity at mid-elevations. At all elevations bacterial communities had a tendency to be phylogenetically clustered, containing closely related taxa. In contrast, plant communities did not exhibit a uniform phylogenetic structure across the gradient: they became more overdispersed with increasing elevation, containing distantly related taxa. Finally, a metric of phylogenetic beta-diversity showed that bacterial lineages were not randomly distributed, but rather exhibited significant spatial structure across the gradient, whereas plant lineages did not exhibit a significant phylogenetic signal. Quantifying the influence of sample scale in intertaxonomic comparisons remains a challenge. Nevertheless, our findings suggest that the forces structuring microorganism and macroorganism communities along elevational gradients differ. PMID:18695215

Combination treatment of elevated UVB radiation, CO2 and temperature has little effect on silver birch (Betula pendula) growth and phytochemistry.

PubMed

Lavola, Anu; Nybakken, Line; Rousi, Matti; Pusenius, Jyrki; Petrelius, Mari; Kellomäki, Seppo; Julkunen-Tiitto, Riitta

2013-12-01

Elevations of carbon dioxide, temperature and ultraviolet-B (UBV) radiation in the growth environment may have a high impact on the accumulation of carbon in plants, and the different factors may work in opposite directions or induce additive effects. To detect the changes in the growth and phytochemistry of silver birch (Betula pendula) seedlings, six genotypes were exposed to combinations of ambient or elevated levels of CO2 , temperature and UVB radiation in top-closed chambers for 7 weeks. The genotypes were relatively similar in their responses, and no significant interactive effects of three-level climate factors on the measured parameters were observed. Elevated UVB had no effect on growth, nor did it alter plant responses to CO2 and/or temperature in combined treatments. Growth in all plant parts increased under elevated CO2 , and height and stem biomass increased under elevated temperature. Increased carbon distribution to biomass did not reduce its allocation to phytochemicals: condensed tannins, most flavonols and phenolic acids accumulated under elevated CO2 and elevated UVB, but this effect disappeared under elevated temperature. Leaf nitrogen content decreased under elevated CO2 . We conclude that, as a result of high genetic variability in phytochemicals, B. pendula seedlings have potential to adapt to the tested environmental changes. The induction in protective flavonoids under UVB radiation together with the positive impact of elevated CO2 and temperature mitigates possible UVB stress effects, and thus atmospheric CO2 concentration and temperature are the climate change factors that will dictate the establishment and success of birch at higher altitudes in the future. © 2013 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

Association of CA 15-3 and CEA with clinicopathological parameters in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

PubMed

Geng, Biao; Liang, Man-Man; Ye, Xiao-Bing; Zhao, Wen-Ying

2015-01-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the association of serum cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels with clinicopathological parameters in patients diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). We retrospectively evaluated the medical records of 284 patients diagnosed with MBC between January, 2007 and December, 2012 who fulfilled the specified criteria and the association between the levels of the two tumor marker and clinicopathological parameters was analyzed. Of the 284 patients, elevated CA 15-3 and CEA levels at initial diagnosis of recurrence were identified in 163 (57.4%) and 97 (34.2%) patients, respectively. Elevated CA 15-3 and CEA levels were significantly associated with breast cancer molecular subtypes (P<0.001 and P=0.032, respectively). Cases with luminal subtypes exhibited a higher percentage of elevated CA 15-3 and CEA levels compared to non-luminal subtypes. Elevated CA 15-3 level was correlated with bone metastasis (P=0.017). However, elevation of CEA was observed regardless of the site of metastasis. Elevation of CA 15-3 was significantly more common in MBC with multiple metastatic sites compared to MBC with a single metastasis (P=0.001). However, the incidence of elevated CEA levels did not differ between patients with a single and those with multiple metastatic sites. In conclusion, elevated CA 15-3 and CEA levels at initial diagnosis of recurrence were found to be associated with breast cancer molecular subtypes, whereas an elevated CA 15-3 level was significantly correlated with bone metastasis and an elevated CEA level was observed regardless of metastatic site. The proportion of MBC cases with elevated CA 15-3 levels differed according to the number of metastatic sites.

Influence of elevation on bark beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae) community structure and flight periodicity in ponderosa pine forests of Arizona.

PubMed

Williams, Kelly K; McMillin, Joel D; DeGomez, Tom E; Clancy, Karen M; Miller, Andy

2008-02-01

We examined abundance and flight periodicity of five Ips and six Dendroctonus species (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae) among three different elevation bands in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Douglas ex. Lawson) forests of northcentral Arizona. Bark beetle populations were monitored at 10 sites in each of three elevation bands (low: 1,600-1,736 m; middle: 2,058-2,230 m; high: 2,505-2,651 m) for 3 yr (2004-2006) using pheromone-baited Lindgren funnel traps. Trap contents were collected weekly from March to December. We also studied temperature differences among the elevation bands and what role this may play in beetle flight behavior. Bark beetles, regardless of species, showed no consistent elevational trend in abundance among the three bands. The higher abundances of Ips lecontei Swaine, I. calligraphus ponderosae Swaine, Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmerman, and D. brevicomis LeConte at low and middle elevations offset the greater abundance of I. knausi Swaine, D. adjunctus Blandford, D. approximatus Dietz, and D. valens LeConte at high elevations. I. pini (Say) and I. latidens LeConte were found in similar numbers across the three bands. Flight periodicity of several species varied among elevation bands. In general, the flight period shortened as elevation increased; flight initiated later and terminated earlier in the year. The timing, number, and magnitude of peaks in flight activity also varied among the elevation bands. These results suggest that abundance and flight seasonality of several bark beetles are related to elevation and the associated temperature differences. The implications of these results are discussed in relation to bark beetle management and population dynamics.

Changes in carbohydrate content and membrane stability of two ecotypes of Calamagrostis arundinacea growing at different elevations in the drawdown zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir.

PubMed

Lei, Shutong; Zeng, Bo; Yuan, Zhi; Su, Xiaolei

2014-01-01

The Three Gorges project has caused many ecosystem problems. Ecological restoration using readily-available plants is an effective way of mitigating environmental impacts. Two perennial submergence-tolerant ecotypes of Calamagrostis arundinacea were planted in an experimental field in the drawdown zone. Responses of the two plant ecotypes to flooding stress in the drawdown zone were unknown. Carbohydrate content and membrane stability, two key factors for survival of plants under flooding stress, of two ecotypes (designated "dwarf" and "green") of C. arundinacea growing at different elevations of the drawdown zone were investigated. Live stems (LS) and dead stems (DS) of the two plant ecotypes at eight elevations (175, 170, 162, 160, 158, 155, 152 m and 149 m) were sampled. Contents of soluble sugar, starch and malondialdehyde (MDA), as well as plasma membrane permeability of live stems were measured. The lowest elevations for survival of dwarf and green C. arundinacea were 160 m and 158 m, respectively. Soluble sugar content of live stems of both ecotypes decreased with elevation, with amounts from an elevation of 170 m being lower than from an elevation of 175 m. MDA content and plasma membrane permeability in live stems of green C. arundinacea did not increase with the decrease in elevation, while these measures in dwarf C. arundinacea from an elevation of 162 m were significantly higher than from an elevation of 175 m. Carbohydrate content, especially soluble sugar content, in both ecotypes was more sensitive to flooding stress than membrane stability. Green C. arundinacea had a higher tolerance to submergence than dwarf C. arundinacea, and thus green C. arundinacea can be planted at lower elevations than dwarf C. arundinacea.

Combined effects of Lanthanum(III) and elevated Ultraviolet-B radiation on root nitrogen nutrient in soybean seedlings.

PubMed

Huang, Guangrong; Wang, Lihong; Sun, Zhaoguo; Li, Xiaodong; Zhou, Qing; Huang, Xiaohua

2015-02-01

Rare earth element pollution and elevated ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation occur simultaneously in some regions, but the combined effects of these two factors on plants have not attracted enough attention. Nitrogen nutrient is vital to plant growth. In this study, the combined effects of lanthanum(III) and elevated UV-B radiation on nitrate reduction and ammonia assimilation in soybean (Glycine max L.) roots were investigated. Treatment with 0.08 mmol L(-1) La(III) did not change the effects of elevated UV-B radiation on nitrate reductase (NR), nitrite reductase (NiR), glutamine synthetase (GS), glutamate synthase (GOGAT), glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH), nitrate, ammonium, amino acids, or soluble protein in the roots. Treatment with 0.24 mmol L(-1) La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation synergistically decreased the NR, NiR, GS, and GOGAT activities as well as the nitrate, amino acid, and soluble protein levels, except for the GDH activity and ammonium content. Combined treatment with 1.20 mmol L(-1) La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation produced severely deleterious effects on all test indices, and these effects were stronger than those induced by La(III) or elevated UV-B radiation treatment alone. Following the withdrawal of La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation, all test indices for the combined treatments with 0.08/0.24 mmol L(-1) La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation recovered to a certain extent, but they could not recover for treatments with 1.20 mmol L(-1) La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation. In summary, combined treatment with La(III) and elevated UV-B radiation seriously affected nitrogen nutrition in soybean roots through the inhibition of nitrate reduction and ammonia assimilation.

Effects of elevated O₃ on microbes in the rhizosphere of mycorrhizal snap bean with different O₃ sensitivity.

PubMed

Wang, Shuguang; Wang, Fei; Diao, Xiaojun; He, Liansheng

2014-02-01

Elevated ozone (O₃) generally affects microbial biomass and community structure in rhizosphere, but these effects are unclear in mycorrhizal plants because arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi often benefit microbial growth in the rhizosphere. Here, we investigate the effects of elevated O₃ on microbial biomass and community structure in the rhizosphere of mycorrhizal snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) with different O₃ sensitivity (R123: O₃-tolerant plant; S156: O₃-sensitive plant) based on the phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) method. Compared with ambient O₃, elevated O₃ significantly decreased mycorrhizal colonization rates in the 2 genotypes, especially in S156 plants. The wet masses of shoot and root were decreased by elevated O₃ in the 2 genotypes independent of AM inoculation, but they were higher in the mycorrhizal plant than in the nonmycorrhizal plant independent of O₃ concentration. Elevated O₃ significantly decreased the relative proportion of specific fungal PLFAs in the nonmycorrhizal plant, but this effect disappeared in the mycorrhizal plant. The relative proportions of specific PLFAs of other microbial groups (Gram-positive, Gram-negative, and actinomycete) in the rhizosphere and all specific PLFAs in the hyphosphere were not affected by elevated O₃ independent of AM inoculation. In the rhizosphere of the 2 genotypes, microbial community structure was changed by AM inoculation and elevated O₃ as well as by their interaction; in the hyphosphere, however, microbial community structure was changed by elevated O₃ only in R123 plants. It is concluded that AM inoculation can offset negative effect of elevated O₃ on fungal biomass but seems to enhance shift of microbial community structure in rhizosphere under elevated O₃.

CO 2 elevation improves photosynthetic performance in progressive warming environment in white birch seedlings.

PubMed

Zhang, Shouren; Dang, Qing-Lai

2013-01-01

White birch (Betula paperifera Mash) seedlings were exposed to progressively warming in greenhouses under ambient and elevated CO 2 concentrations for 5 months to explore boreal tree species' potential capacity to acclimate to global climate warming and CO 2 elevation. In situ foliar gas exchange, in vivo carboxylation characteristics and chlorophyll fluorescence were measured at temperatures of 26 (o)C and 37 (o)C. Elevated CO 2 significantly increased net photosynthetic rate (Pn) at both measurement temperatures, and Pn at 37 (o)C was higher than that at 26 (o)C under elevated CO 2. Stomatal conductance (gs) was lower at 37 (o)C than at 26 (o)C, while transpiration rate (E) was higher at 37 (o)C than that at 26 (o)C. Elevated CO 2 significantly increased instantaneous water-use efficiency (WUE) at both 26 (o)C and 37 (o)C, but WUE was markedly enhanced at 37 (o)C under elevated CO 2. The effect of temperature on maximal carboxylation rate (Vcmax), PAR-saturated electron transport rate (Jmax) and triose phosphate utilization (TPU) varied with CO 2, and the Vcmax and Jmax were significantly higher at 37 (o)C than at 26 (o)C under elevated CO 2. However, there were no significant interactive effects of CO 2 and temperature on TPU. The actual photochemical efficiency of PSII (DF/ Fm'), total photosynthetic linear electron transport rate through PSII (JT) and the partitioning of JT to carboxylation (Jc) were higher at 37 (o)C than at 26 (o)C under elevated CO 2. Elevated CO 2 significantly suppressed the partitioning of JT to oxygenation (Jo/JT). The data suggest that the CO 2 elevation and progressive warming greatly enhanced photosynthesis in white birch seedlings in an interactive fashion.

The outcome of ecosystem manipulation by elevating atmospheric CO2 is influenced by tree identity and mixture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Godbold, Douglas; Smith, Andrew; Lukac, Martin

2013-04-01

Free Air Carbon dioxide Enrichment (FACE) has often been used predict the response of forest ecosystems to a future high CO2 world. Many of these investigations have been restricted to exposure of single species or genotypes to elevated CO2. To investigate the interaction between tree mixture and elevated CO2, Alnus glutinosa, Betula pendula and Fagus sylvatica were planted in areas of single species and a three species polyculture in a free-air CO2 enrichment study (BangorFACE). The trees were exposed to ambient or elevated CO2 for 4 years. Aboveground woody biomass was increased in polyculture under both ambient and elevated CO2, but the response to elevated CO2 was smaller in polyculture than in the monocultures. In some years, a longer leaf retention was shown under high CO2, and is an indication that environmental factors may moderate tree response to high CO2. Fine and coarse root biomass, together with fine root turnover and fine root morphological characteristics were also measured. Fine root biomass and morphology responded differentially to the elevated CO2 at different soil depths in the three species when grown in monocultures. In polyculture, a greater response to elevated CO2 was observed in coarse roots, and fine root area index. Total fine root biomass was positively affected by elevated CO2 at the end of the experiment, but not by species diversity. Our results show that the aboveground and belowground response to elevated CO2 is significantly affected by intra- and inter-specific competition, and that elevated CO2 response may be reduced in forest communities comprised of tree species with contrasting functional traits but also that other environmental factors may induce previously unseen effects.

The effect of elevated temperatures on the life history and insecticide resistance phenotype of the major malaria vector Anopheles arabiensis (Diptera: Culicidae).

PubMed

Oliver, Shüné V; Brooke, Basil D

2017-02-14

Temperature plays a crucial role in the life history of insects. Recent climate change research has highlighted the importance of elevated temperature on malaria vector distribution. This study aims to examine the role of elevated temperatures on epidemiologically important life-history traits in the major malaria vector, Anopheles arabiensis. Specifically, the differential effects of temperature on insecticide-resistant and susceptible strains were examined. Two laboratory strains of A. arabiensis, the insecticide-susceptible SENN and the insecticide-resistant SENN DDT strains, were used to examine the effect of elevated temperatures on larval development and adult longevity. The effects of various elevated temperatures on insecticide resistance phenotypes were also examined and the biochemical basis of the changes in insecticide resistance phenotype was assessed. SENN and SENN DDT larvae developed at similar rates at elevated temperatures. SENN DDT adult survivorship did not vary between control and elevated temperatures, while the longevity of SENN adults at constantly elevated temperatures was significantly reduced. SENN DDT adults lived significantly longer than SENN at constantly elevated temperatures. Elevated rearing temperatures, as well as a short-term exposure to 37 and 39 °C as adults, augmented pyrethroid resistance in adult SENN DDT, and increased pyrethroid tolerance in SENN. Detoxification enzyme activity was not implicated in this phenotypic effect. Quercertin-induced synergism of inducible heat shock proteins negated this temperature-mediated augmentation of pyrethroid resistance. Insecticide-resistant A. arabiensis live longer than their susceptible counterparts at elevated temperatures. Exposure to heat shock augments pyrethroid resistance in both resistant and susceptible strains. This response is potentially mediated by inducible heat shock proteins.

Water relations and gas exchange in poplar and willow under water stress and elevated atmospheric CO2.

PubMed

Johnson, Jon D; Tognetti, Roberto; Paris, Piero

2002-05-01

Predictions of shifts in rainfall patterns as atmospheric [CO2] increases could impact the growth of fast growing trees such as Populus spp. and Salix spp. and the interaction between elevated CO2 and water stress in these species is unknown. The objectives of this study were to characterize the responses to elevated CO2 and water stress in these two species, and to determine if elevated CO2 mitigated drought stress effects. Gas exchange, water potential components, whole plant transpiration and growth response to soil drying and recovery were assessed in hybrid poplar (clone 53-246) and willow (Salix sagitta) rooted cuttings growing in either ambient (350 &mgr;mol mol-1) or elevated (700 &mgr;mol mol-1) atmospheric CO2 concentration ([CO2]). Predawn water potential decreased with increasing water stress while midday water potentials remained unchanged (isohydric response). Turgor potentials at both predawn and midday increased in elevated [CO2], indicative of osmotic adjustment. Gas exchange was reduced by water stress while elevated [CO2] increased photosynthetic rates, reduced leaf conductance and nearly doubled instantaneous transpiration efficiency in both species. Dark respiration decreased in elevated [CO2] and water stress reduced Rd in the trees growing in ambient [CO2]. Willow had 56% lower whole plant hydraulic conductivity than poplar, and showed a 14% increase in elevated [CO2] while poplar was unresponsive. The physiological responses exhibited by poplar and willow to elevated [CO2] and water stress, singly, suggest that these species respond like other tree species. The interaction of [CO2] and water stress suggests that elevated [CO2] did mitigate the effects of water stress in willow, but not in poplar.

The Encoding of Sound Source Elevation in the Human Auditory Cortex.

PubMed

Trapeau, Régis; Schönwiesner, Marc

2018-03-28

Spatial hearing is a crucial capacity of the auditory system. While the encoding of horizontal sound direction has been extensively studied, very little is known about the representation of vertical sound direction in the auditory cortex. Using high-resolution fMRI, we measured voxelwise sound elevation tuning curves in human auditory cortex and show that sound elevation is represented by broad tuning functions preferring lower elevations as well as secondary narrow tuning functions preferring individual elevation directions. We changed the ear shape of participants (male and female) with silicone molds for several days. This manipulation reduced or abolished the ability to discriminate sound elevation and flattened cortical tuning curves. Tuning curves recovered their original shape as participants adapted to the modified ears and regained elevation perception over time. These findings suggest that the elevation tuning observed in low-level auditory cortex did not arise from the physical features of the stimuli but is contingent on experience with spectral cues and covaries with the change in perception. One explanation for this observation may be that the tuning in low-level auditory cortex underlies the subjective perception of sound elevation. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT This study addresses two fundamental questions about the brain representation of sensory stimuli: how the vertical spatial axis of auditory space is represented in the auditory cortex and whether low-level sensory cortex represents physical stimulus features or subjective perceptual attributes. Using high-resolution fMRI, we show that vertical sound direction is represented by broad tuning functions preferring lower elevations as well as secondary narrow tuning functions preferring individual elevation directions. In addition, we demonstrate that the shape of these tuning functions is contingent on experience with spectral cues and covaries with the change in perception, which may indicate that the tuning functions in low-level auditory cortex underlie the perceived elevation of a sound source. Copyright © 2018 the authors 0270-6474/18/383252-13$15.00/0.

Dispersal limitation does not control high elevational distribution of alien plant species in the southern Sierra Nevada, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rundel, Philip W.; Keeley, Jon E.

2016-01-01

Patterns of elevational distribution of alien plant species in the southern Sierra Nevada of California were used to test the hypothesis that alien plant species invading high elevations around the world are typically climate generalists capable of growing across a wide elevational range. The Sierra Nevada has been heavily impacted for more than a century and a half, first by heavy grazing up into high elevation meadows, followed by major logging, and finally, by impacts associated with recreational use. The comparative elevational patterns of distribution and growth form were compared for native and alien plant species in the four families (Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Fabaceae, and Poaceae) that contribute the majority of naturalized aliens in the study area. The distribution of realized climatic niche breadth, as measured by elevational range of occurrence, was virtually identical for alien and native species, with both groups showing a roughly Gaussian distribution peaking with species whose range covers a span of 1500–1999 m. In contrast to alien species, which only rarely occurred at higher elevations, native species showed a distribution of upper elevation limits peaking at 3000–3499 m, an elevation that corresponds to the zone of upper montane and subalpine forests. Consistent with a hypothesis of abiotic limitations, only a few alien species have been ecologically successful invaders at subalpine and alpine elevations above 2500 m. The low diversity of aliens able to become established in these habitats is unlikely due to dispersal limitations, given the long history of heavy grazing pressure at high elevations across this region. Instead, this low diversity is hypothesized to be a function of life history traits and multiple abiotic stresses that include extremes of cold air and soil temperature, heavy snowfall, short growing seasons, and low resource availability. These findings have significant implications for resource managers.

Does joint line elevation after revision knee arthroplasty affect tibio-femoral kinematics, contact pressure or collateral ligament lengths? An in vitro analysis

PubMed Central

Kowalczewski, Jacek B.; Chevalier, Yan; Okon, Tomasz; Innocenti, Bernardo; Bellemans, Johan

2015-01-01

Introduction Correct restoration of the joint line is generally considered as crucial when performing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). During revision knee arthroplasty however, elevation of the joint line occurs frequently. The general belief is that this negatively affects the clinical outcome, but the reasons are still not well understood. Material and methods In this cadaveric in vitro study the biomechanical consequences of joint line elevation were investigated using a previously validated cadaver model simulating active deep knee squats and passive flexion-extension cycles. Knee specimens were sequentially tested after total knee arthroplasty with joint line restoration and after 4 mm joint line elevation. Results The tibia rotated internally with increasing knee flexion during both passive and squatting motion (range: 17° and 7° respectively). Joint line elevation of 4 mm did not make a statistically significant difference. During passive motion, the tibia tended to become slightly more adducted with increasing knee flexion (range: 2°), while it went into slighlty less adduction during squatting (range: –2°). Neither of both trends was influenced by joint line elevation. Also anteroposterior translation of the femoral condyle centres was not affected by joint line elevation, although there was a tendency for a small posterior shift (of about 3 mm) during squatting after joint line elevation. In terms of kinetics, ligaments lengths and length changes, tibiofemoral contact pressures and quadriceps forces all showed the same patterns before and joint line elevation. No statistically significant changes could be detected. Conclusions Our study suggests that joint line elevation by 4 mm in revision total knee arthroplasty does not cause significant kinematic and kinetic differences during passive flexion/extension movement and squatting in the tibio-femoral joint, nor does it affect the elongation patterns of collateral ligaments. Therefore, clinical problems after joint line elevation are probably situated in the patello-femoral joint or caused by joint line elevation of more than 4 mm. PMID:25995746

National requirements for improved elevation data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Snyder, Gregory I.; Sugarbaker, Larry J.; Jason, Allyson L.; Maune, David F.

2014-01-01

This report presents the results of surveys, structured interviews, and workshops conducted to identify key national requirements for improved elevation data for the United States and its territories, including coastlines. Organizations also identified and reported the expected economic benefits that would be realized if their requirements for improved elevation were met (appendixes 1–3). This report describes the data collection methodology and summarizes the findings. Participating organizations included 34 Federal agencies, 50 States and two territories, and a sampling of local governments, tribes, and nongovernmental orgnizations. The nongovernmental organizations included The Nature Conservancy and a sampling of private sector businesses. These data were collected in 2010-2011 as part of the National Enhanced Elevation Assessment (NEEA), a study to identify program alternatives for better meeting the Nation’s elevation data needs. NEEA tasks included the collection of national elevation requirements; analysis of the benefits and costs of meeting these requirements; assessment of emerging elevation technologies, lifecycle data management needs, and costs for managing and distributing a national-scale dataset and derived products; and candidate national elevation program alternatives that balance costs and benefits in meeting the Nation’s elevation requirements. The NEEA was sponsored by the National Digital Elevation Program (NDEP), a government coordination body with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as managing partner that includes the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), among the more than a dozen agencies and organizations. The term enhanced elevation data as used in this report refers broadly to three-dimensional measurements of land or submerged topography, built features, vegetation structure, and other landscape detail. Additional information about NEEA and its later use in the development of a 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) can be found at http://nationalmap.gov/3DEP/index.html.

Changes in Respiratory Mitochondrial Machinery and Cytochrome and Alternative Pathway Activities in Response to Energy Demand Underlie the Acclimation of Respiration to Elevated CO2 in the Invasive Opuntia ficus-indica1[OA

PubMed Central

Gomez-Casanovas, Nuria; Blanc-Betes, Elena; Gonzalez-Meler, Miquel A.; Azcon-Bieto, Joaquim

2007-01-01

Studies on long-term effects of plants grown at elevated CO2 are scarce and mechanisms of such responses are largely unknown. To gain mechanistic understanding on respiratory acclimation to elevated CO2, the Crassulacean acid metabolism Mediterranean invasive Opuntia ficus-indica Miller was grown at various CO2 concentrations. Respiration rates, maximum activity of cytochrome c oxidase, and active mitochondrial number consistently decreased in plants grown at elevated CO2 during the 9 months of the study when compared to ambient plants. Plant growth at elevated CO2 also reduced cytochrome pathway activity, but increased the activity of the alternative pathway. Despite all these effects seen in plants grown at high CO2, the specific oxygen uptake rate per unit of active mitochondria was the same for plants grown at ambient and elevated CO2. Although decreases in photorespiration activity have been pointed out as a factor contributing to the long-term acclimation of plant respiration to growth at elevated CO2, the homeostatic maintenance of specific respiratory rate per unit of mitochondria in response to high CO2 suggests that photorespiratory activity may play a small role on the long-term acclimation of respiration to elevated CO2. However, despite growth enhancement and as a result of the inhibition in cytochrome pathway activity by elevated CO2, total mitochondrial ATP production was decreased by plant growth at elevated CO2 when compared to ambient-grown plants. Because plant growth at elevated CO2 increased biomass but reduced respiratory machinery, activity, and ATP yields while maintaining O2 consumption rates per unit of mitochondria, we suggest that acclimation to elevated CO2 results from physiological adjustment of respiration to tissue ATP demand, which may not be entirely driven by nitrogen metabolism as previously suggested. PMID:17660349

Humic Acid Composition and Characteristics of Soil Organic Matter in Relation to the Elevation Gradient of Moso Bamboo Plantations.

PubMed

Wang, Hsueh-Ching; Chou, Chiao-Ying; Chiou, Chyi-Rong; Tian, Guanglong; Chiu, Chih-Yu

2016-01-01

Studying the influence of climatic and/or site-specific factors on soil organic matter (SOM) along an elevation gradient is important for understanding the response of SOM to global warming. We evaluated the composition of SOM and structure of humic acids along an altitudinal gradient from 600 to 1400 m in moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) plantations in central Taiwan using NMR spectroscopy and photometric analysis. Total organic C and total nitrogen (N) content increased with increasing elevation. Aromaticity decreased and ΔlogK (the logarithm of the absorbance ratio of humic acids at 400 and 600 nm) increased with increasing elevation, which suggests that SOM humification decreased with increasing elevation. High temperature at low elevations seemed to enhance the decomposition (less accumulation of total organic C and N) and humification (high aromaticity and low ΔlogK). The alkyl-C/O-alkyl-C (A/O-A) ratio of humic acids increased with increasing elevation, which suggests that SOM humification increased with increasing elevation; this finding was contrary to the trend observed for ΔlogK and aromaticity. Such a discrepancy might be due to the relatively greater remaining of SOM derived from high alkyl-C broadleaf litter of previous forest at high elevations. The ratio of recalcitrant C to total organic C was low at low elevations, possibly because of enhanced decomposition of recalcitrant SOM from the previous broadleaf forest during long-term intensive cultivation and high temperature. Overall, the change in SOM pools and in the rate of humification with elevation was primarily affected by changes in climatic conditions along the elevation gradient in these bamboo plantations. However, when the composition of SOM, as assessed by NMR spectroscopy and photometric analysis was considered, site-specific factors such as residual SOM from previous forest and intensive cultivation history could also have an important effect on the humic acid composition and humification of SOM.

Humic Acid Composition and Characteristics of Soil Organic Matter in Relation to the Elevation Gradient of Moso Bamboo Plantations

PubMed Central

Wang, Hsueh-Ching; Chou, Chiao-Ying; Chiou, Chyi-Rong; Tian, Guanglong

2016-01-01

Studying the influence of climatic and/or site-specific factors on soil organic matter (SOM) along an elevation gradient is important for understanding the response of SOM to global warming. We evaluated the composition of SOM and structure of humic acids along an altitudinal gradient from 600 to 1400 m in moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) plantations in central Taiwan using NMR spectroscopy and photometric analysis. Total organic C and total nitrogen (N) content increased with increasing elevation. Aromaticity decreased and ΔlogK (the logarithm of the absorbance ratio of humic acids at 400 and 600 nm) increased with increasing elevation, which suggests that SOM humification decreased with increasing elevation. High temperature at low elevations seemed to enhance the decomposition (less accumulation of total organic C and N) and humification (high aromaticity and low ΔlogK). The alkyl-C/O-alkyl-C (A/O-A) ratio of humic acids increased with increasing elevation, which suggests that SOM humification increased with increasing elevation; this finding was contrary to the trend observed for ΔlogK and aromaticity. Such a discrepancy might be due to the relatively greater remaining of SOM derived from high alkyl-C broadleaf litter of previous forest at high elevations. The ratio of recalcitrant C to total organic C was low at low elevations, possibly because of enhanced decomposition of recalcitrant SOM from the previous broadleaf forest during long-term intensive cultivation and high temperature. Overall, the change in SOM pools and in the rate of humification with elevation was primarily affected by changes in climatic conditions along the elevation gradient in these bamboo plantations. However, when the composition of SOM, as assessed by NMR spectroscopy and photometric analysis was considered, site-specific factors such as residual SOM from previous forest and intensive cultivation history could also have an important effect on the humic acid composition and humification of SOM. PMID:27583451

Functional role of long-lived flowers in preventing pollen limitation in a high elevation outcrossing species

PubMed Central

Pacheco, Diego Andrés; Dudley, Leah S

2017-01-01

Abstract Low pollinator visitation in harsh environments may lead to pollen limitation which can threaten population persistence. Consequently, avoidance of pollen limitation is expected in outcrossing species subjected to habitually low pollinator service. The elevational decline in visitation rates on many high mountains provides an outstanding opportunity for addressing this question. According to a recent meta-analysis, levels of pollen limitation in alpine and lowland species do not differ. If parallel trends are manifested among populations of alpine species with wide elevational ranges, how do their uppermost populations contend with lower visitation? We investigated visitation rates and pollen limitation in high Andean Rhodolirium montanum. We test the hypothesis that lower visitation rates at high elevations are compensated for by the possession of long-lived flowers. Visitation rates decreased markedly over elevation as temperature decreased. Pollen limitation was absent at the low elevation site but did occur at the high elevation site. While initiation of stigmatic pollen deposition at high elevations was not delayed, rates of pollen arrival were lower, and cessation of pollination, as reflected by realized flower longevity, occurred later in the flower lifespan. Comparison of the elevational visitation decline and levels of pollen limitation indicates that flower longevity partially compensates for the lower visitation rates at high elevation. The functional role of flower longevity, however, was strongly masked by qualitative pollen limitation arising from higher abortion levels attributable to transference of genetically low-quality pollen in large clones. Stronger clonal growth at high elevations could counterbalance the negative fitness consequences of residual pollen limitation due to low visitation rates and/or difficult establishment under colder conditions. Visitation rates on the lower part of the elevational range greatly exceeded community rates recorded several decades ago when the planet was cooler. Current pollen limitation for some species in some habitats might underestimate historical levels. PMID:29225762

Elevated temperature and CO(2) concentration effects on xylem anatomy of Scots pine.

PubMed

Kilpeläinen, Antti; Gerendiain, Ane Zubizarreta; Luostarinen, Katri; Peltola, Heli; Kellomäki, Seppo

2007-09-01

We studied the effects of elevated temperature and carbon dioxide concentration ([CO(2)]) alone and together on wood anatomy of 20-year-old Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees. The study was conducted in 16 closed chambers, providing a factorial combination of two temperature regimes and two CO(2) concentrations (ambient and elevated), with four trees in each treatment. The climate scenario included a doubling of [CO(2)] and a corresponding increase of 2-6 degrees C in temperature at the site depending on the season. Anatomical characteristics analyzed were annual earlywood, latewood and ring widths, intra-ring wood densities (earlywood, latewood and mean wood density), tracheid width, length, wall thickness, lumen diameter, wall thickness:lumen diameter ratio and mass per unit length (coarseness), and numbers of rays, resin canals and tracheids per xylem cross-sectional area. Elevated [CO(2)] increased ring width in four of six treatment years; earlywood width increased in the first two years and latewood width in the third year. Tracheid walls in both the earlywood and latewood tended to become thicker over the 6-year treatment period when temperature or [CO(2)] was elevated alone, whereas in the combined treatment they tended to become thinner relative to the tracheids of trees grown under ambient conditions. Latewood tracheid lumen diameters were larger in all the treatments relative to ambient conditions over the 6-year period, whereas lumen diameters in earlywood increased only in response to elevated [CO(2)] and were 3-6% smaller in the treatments with elevated temperature than in ambient conditions. Tracheid width, length and coarseness were greater in trees grown in elevated than in ambient temperature. The number of resin canals per mm(2) decreased in the elevated [CO(2)] treatment and increased in the elevated temperature treatments relative to ambient conditions. The treatments decreased the number of rays and tracheids per mm(2) of cross-sectional area, the greatest decrease occurring in the elevated [CO(2)] treatment. It seemed that xylem anatomy was affected more by elevated temperature than by elevated [CO(2)] and that the effects of temperature were confined to the earlywood.

Prevalence of abnormal serum liver enzymes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a cross-sectional study from China.

PubMed

Chen, Shuang; Guo, Xiaofan; Chen, Yintao; Dong, Siyuan; Sun, Yingxian

2016-11-01

This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the prevalence of elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in Chinese type 2 diabetic patients and identify contributing risk factors. This cross-sectional study was conducted in rural areas of China, and 1,198 type 2 diabetic patients with complete data were recruited. Elevated ALT and AST levels were defined as >40 U/L. Prevalence of abnormal liver enzymes was analyzed and multivariable analysis was used to identify independent risk factors. 10.3% and 6.1% diabetic patients had elevated ALT and elevated AST, respectively. The prevalence of elevated liver enzymes was gender-related; it was 13.8% in men and 7.5% in women for elevated ALT, and 7.4% in men and 3.1% in women for elevated AST. High triglyceride was positively associated with both elevated ALT (OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.08-3.01, p = 0.024) and elevated AST (OR 2.24, 95%CI 1.08-4.65, p = 0.031), while taking anti-diabetes medicine was inversely related to both elevated ALT (OR 0.48, 95% CI 0.29-0.80, p = 0.005) and elevated AST (OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.17-0.82, p = 0.014). The risk of elevated ALT in diabetic patients increased with the presence of obesity (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.07-6.01, p = 0.034), and was lower in women (OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.19-0.72, p = 0.003). Hypertension (OR 4.33, 95% CI 1.41-13.30, p = 0.011), current drinking status (OR 2.90, 95% CI 1.21-6.96, p = 0.017) and national minority (OR 3.26, 95%CI 1.31-8.12, p = 0.011) were risk factors for elevated AST. A relatively high prevalence of abnormal serum liver enzymes in diabetic patients was demonstrated in China, especially in males. More attention should be paid to preventing liver injuries in diabetic patients.

Using Selective Drainage Methods to Extract Continuous Surface Flow from 1-Meter Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Poppenga, Sandra K.; Worstell, Bruce B.; Stoker, Jason M.; Greenlee, Susan K.

2010-01-01

Digital elevation data commonly are used to extract surface flow features. One source for high-resolution elevation data is light detection and ranging (lidar). Lidar can capture a vast amount of topographic detail because of its fine-scale ability to digitally capture the surface of the earth. Because elevation is a key factor in extracting surface flow features, high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation models (DEMs) provide the detail needed to consistently integrate hydrography with elevation, land cover, structures, and other geospatial features. The U.S. Geological Survey has developed selective drainage methods to extract continuous surface flow from high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation data. The lidar-derived continuous surface flow network contains valuable information for water resource management involving flood hazard mapping, flood inundation, and coastal erosion. DEMs used in hydrologic applications typically are processed to remove depressions by filling them. High-resolution DEMs derived from lidar can capture much more detail of the land surface than courser elevation data. Therefore, high-resolution DEMs contain more depressions because of obstructions such as roads, railroads, and other elevated structures. The filling of these depressions can significantly affect the DEM-derived surface flow routing and terrain characteristics in an adverse way. In this report, selective draining methods that modify the elevation surface to drain a depression through an obstruction are presented. If such obstructions are not removed from the elevation data, the filling of depressions to create continuous surface flow can cause the flow to spill over an obstruction in the wrong location. Using this modified elevation surface improves the quality of derived surface flow and retains more of the true surface characteristics by correcting large filled depressions. A reliable flow surface is necessary for deriving a consistently connected drainage network, which is important in understanding surface water movement and developing applications for surface water runoff, flood inundation, and erosion. Improved methods are needed to extract continuous surface flow features from high-resolution elevation data based on lidar.

Selenium and mercury have a synergistic negative effect on fish reproduction.

PubMed

Penglase, S; Hamre, K; Ellingsen, S

2014-04-01

Selenium (Se) can reduce the negative impacts of mercury (Hg) toxicity on growth and survival, but little is known about how these two elements interact in reproduction. In the following study we explored the effects of organic Hg and Se on the growth, survival and reproduction of female zebrafish (Danio rerio). Fish were fed one of four diets from 73 until 226 dpf in a 2 × 2 factorial design, using selenomethionine (SeMet) and methylmercury (MeHg) as the Se and Hg sources, respectively. Each diet contained Se at either requirement (0.7 mg Se/kg DM) or elevated levels (10 mg Se/kgDM), and Hg at either low (0.05 mg Hg/kg DM) or elevated (12 mg Hg/kg DM) levels. Between 151 and 206 dpf the female fish were pairwise crossed against untreated male fish and the mating success, fecundity, embryo survival, and subsequent overall reproductive success were measured. Elevated dietary Se reduced Hg levels in both the adult fish and their eggs. Elevated dietary Hg and Se increased egg Se levels to a greater extent than when dietary Se was elevated alone. At elevated maternal intake levels, egg concentrations of Se and Hg reflected the maternal dietary levels and not the body burdens of the adult fish. Elevated dietary Hg reduced the growth and survival of female fish, but these effects were largely prevented with elevated dietary Se. Elevated dietary Se alone did not affect fish growth or survival. Compared to other treatments, elevated dietary Hg alone increased both mating and overall reproductive success with <100 days of exposure, but decreased these parameters with >100 days exposure. Elevated dietary Se decreased fecundity, embryo survival, and overall reproductive success. The combination of elevated Se and Hg had a synergistic negative effect on all aspects of fish reproduction compared to those groups fed elevated levels of either Se or Hg. Overall the data demonstrate that while increased dietary Se may reduce adverse effects of Hg on the growth and survival in adult fish, it can negatively affect fish reproductive potential, and the effect on reproduction is enhanced in the presence of elevated Hg. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of AltiKa and CryoSat-2 Elevation and Elevation Rates over the Amundsen Sea Sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otosaka, I.; Shepherd, A.; Hogg, A.

2017-12-01

Altimeters have been successfully used for more than two decades to observe changes in the ice sheet surface and to estimate the contribution of ice sheets to sea level rise. The Satellite for Argos and AltiKa (SARAL) was launched in February 2013 as a joint mission between the French space agency (CNES) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). While the altimeters previously launched into space are operating at Ku-band (13.6 GHz), the altimeter on board SARAL, AltiKa, is the first instrument to operate at Ka-band (36.8 GHz). The higher frequency of AltiKa is expected to lead to reduced penetration of the radar signal into the snowpack, compared to Ku-band. A comparison of ice sheet elevation measurements recorded at the two frequencies may therefore provide useful information on surface and its scattering properties. In this study, we compare elevation and elevation rates recorded by AltiKa and CryoSat-2 between March 2013 and April 2017 over the Amundsen Sea Sector (ASS), one of the most rapidly changing sectors of West Antarctica. Elevation and elevation rates are computed within 5 km grid cells using a plane fit method, taking into account the contributions of topography and fluctuations in elevation and backscatter. The drifting orbit and imaging modes of CryoSat-2 result in 78,7 % sampling of the study area, whereas AltiKa samples 39,7 % due to its sparser orbit pattern and due to loss of signal in steeply sloping coastal margins. Over the study period, the root mean square difference between elevation and elevation change recorded at Ka-band and Ku-band were 40.3 m and 0.54 m/yr, respectively. While the broad spatial pattern of elevation change is well resolved by both satellites, data gaps along the Getz coastline may be partly responsible for the lower elevation change rate observed at Ka-band. We also compared CryoSat-2 and AltiKa to coincident airborne data from NASA's Operation IceBridge (OIB). The mean difference of elevation rate between space borne data and IceBridge data are respectively -0.09 m/yr and -0.08 m/yr at Ka and Ku band, highlighting the good capability of both CryoSat-2 and AltiKa to accurately map ice sheet elevation change.

The Use of Sun Elevation Angle for Stereogrammetric Boreal Forest Height in Open Canopies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Montesano, Paul M.; Neigh, Christopher; Sun, Guoqing; Duncanson, Laura Innice; Van Den Hoek, Jamon; Ranson, Kenneth Jon

2017-01-01

Stereogrammetry applied to globally available high resolution spaceborne imagery (HRSI; less than 5 m spatial resolution) yields fine-scaled digital surface models (DSMs) of elevation. These DSMs may represent elevations that range from the ground to the vegetation canopy surface, are produced from stereoscopic image pairs (stereo pairs) that have a variety of acquisition characteristics, and have been coupled with lidar data of forest structure and ground surface elevation to examine forest height. This work explores surface elevations from HRSI DSMs derived from two types of acquisitions in open canopy forests. We (1) apply an automated mass-production stereogrammetry workflow to along-track HRSI stereo pairs, (2) identify multiple spatially coincident DSMs whose stereo pairs were acquired under different solar geometry, (3) vertically co-register these DSMs using coincident spaceborne lidar footprints (from ICESat-GLAS) as reference, and(4) examine differences in surface elevations between the reference lidar and the co-registered HRSI DSMs associated with two general types of acquisitions (DSM types) from different sun elevation angles. We find that these DSM types, distinguished by sun elevation angle at the time of stereo pair acquisition, are associated with different surface elevations estimated from automated stereogrammetry in open canopy forests. For DSM values with corresponding reference ground surface elevation from spaceborne lidar footprints in open canopy northern Siberian Larix forests with slopes less than10, our results show that HRSI DSM acquired with sun elevation angles greater than 35deg and less than 25deg (during snow-free conditions) produced characteristic and consistently distinct distributions of elevation differences from reference lidar. The former include DSMs of near-ground surfaces with root mean square errors less than 0.68 m relative to lidar. The latter, particularly those with angles less than 10deg, show distributions with larger differences from lidar that are associated with open canopy forests whose vegetation surface elevations are captured. Terrain aspect did not have a strong effect on the distribution of vegetation surfaces. Using the two DSM types together, the distribution of DSM-differenced heights in forests (6.0 m, sigma = 1.4 m) was consistent with the distribution of plot-level mean tree heights (6.5m, sigma = 1.2 m). We conclude that the variation in sun elevation angle at time of stereo pair acquisition can create illumination conditions conducive for capturing elevations of surfaces either near the ground or associated with vegetation canopy. Knowledge of HRSI acquisition solar geometry and snow cover can be used to understand and combine stereogrammetric surface elevation estimates to co-register rand difference overlapping DSMs, providing a means to map forest height at fine scales, resolving the vertical structure of groups of trees from spaceborne platforms in open canopy forests.

Availability of food resources, distribution of invasive species, and conservation of a Hawaiian bird along a gradient of elevation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Banko, P.C.; Oboyski, P.T.; Slotterback, J.W.; Dougill, Steve J.; Goltz, Dan M.; Johnson, L.; Laut, M.E.; Murray, T.C.

2002-01-01

Aim: We evaluated how an elevation gradient affects: (1) the availability of food required by a specialist seed-eater, Loxioides bailleui Oustalet (Drepanidinae), or pallia, and hence the distribution of this endangered Hawaiian bird, and (2) the distribution of alien threats to Loxioides populations, their primary foods, and their dry-forest habitat, and hence strategies for their conservation. Location: We worked throughout the subalpine forest that encircles Mauna Kea Volcano, Hawai'i Island, but we focused our studies mainly on the western slope between 2000 and 3000 m elevation, where the gradient of elevation was greatest and palila were most abundant. Methods: We determined phenology and productivity patterns of the endemic dry-forest tree species, Sophora chrysophylla (Salisb.) Seem. (Fabaceae), or ma??mane, which provides Loxioides with most of their food, and another common endemic tree, Myoporum sandwicense A. Gray (Myoporaceae), or naio, which provides some resources, along a 786-m elevation gradient at monthly intervals for 10 years (Sophora only). We also determined the availability each month of moth larvae (Lepidoptera) for that were important in the diet of nestling and adult palila. In addition, we documented the incidence of parasitism on moth larvae by several wasp (Hymenoptera) and fly (Diptera) species, and we determined the distribution of predatory wasps and ants (Hymenoptera), which potentially threaten insect prey of birds. Percentage cover of alien grass species that pose fire threats in palila habitat and other weeds were assessed during one survey. Small mammal abundance and distribution were determined by trapping during three (rodent) or five (carnivore) surveys. Results: Sophora flower and seed (pod) availability varied predictably along the elevation gradient, with about 4 months separating peaks in reproduction at high and low elevations. This, together with highly variable production of flowers and pods within elevation strata, resulted in Sophora resources being available to Loxioides throughout the year on the western slope of Mauna Kea. Sophora produced flowers and pods more seasonally where gradients of elevation were short; thus, resources were available less consistently. In contrast, Myoporum produced flowers and fruits with little variation with respect to season or elevation. The availability of important insect prey of Loxioides was also related to elevation, in part because threats to Lepidoptera larvae from parasitic wasps were generally less at higher elevations. Threats to insect prey from predatory ants was also less at higher elevations but the abundance of predatory wasps was not related to elevation. Several weeds that pose the most serious threats to Loxioides habitat were more abundant at mid and low elevations, and alien grass cover was somewhat greater at mid elevation, thereby increasing fire risks in the centre of Loxioides habitat. Predatory mammals, in particular Felis catus Linnaeus, were common throughout the subalpine forest of Mauna Kea. However, Rattus rattus Linnaeus was rare, especially at higher elevations, whereas Mus musculus Linnaeus was more abundant at lower elevations. Main conclusions: Loxioides are concentrated in habitat that is distributed along a substantial gradient of elevation at least in part because food is available throughout the year and threats to food resources are less concentrated. To recover Loxioides elsewhere in its former range, habitats must be restored and alien threats reduced along extensive elevation gradients. Conservation along environmental gradients will likely benefit other Hawaiian birds that track the availability of food across landscapes or that have been stranded in the higher portions of their original ranges because of the greater impacts of alien diseases, predators, food competitors, and habitat stressors at lower elevations.

Forest vegetation related to elevation in the White Mountains of New Hampshire

Treesearch

William B. Leak; Raymond E. Graber

1974-01-01

Maximum tree size and species composition are related to elevation on Mount Washington (disturbed by logging) and Mount Whiteface (uncut) in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Species migrational trends and differences between the two mountains in species elevational limits indicate that both hardwoods and softwoods will move to higher elevations in areas where...

ELEVATED CO2 AND ELEVATED TEMPERATURE AFFECT CARBON AND NITROGEN CONCENTRATIONS BUT NOT ACCUMULATION IN PSEUDOTSUGA MENZIESII SEEDLINGS

EPA Science Inventory

To determine the impact of climate change on concentrations and accumulation of C and N in trees, we grew Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco (Douglas-fir) seedlings treated with ambient or elevated (+180 mol mol-1) CO2, and with ambient or elevated (+3.5 C) temperature for f...

29 CFR 780.711 - Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. 780.711 Section 780.711 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION... Elevator § 780.711 Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. The language of section...

29 CFR 780.711 - Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. 780.711 Section 780.711 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION... Elevator § 780.711 Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. The language of section...

29 CFR 780.711 - Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. 780.711 Section 780.711 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION... Elevator § 780.711 Exemption of mixed business applies only to country elevators. The language of section...

44 CFR 65.5 - Revision to special hazard area boundaries with no change to base flood elevation determinations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... from flooding.” (6) Data to substantiate the base flood elevation. If we complete a Flood Insurance Study (FIS), we will use those data to substantiate the base flood elevation. Otherwise, the community... technical data prepared and certified by a registered professional engineer. If base flood elevations have...

EFFECTS OF ELEVATED CO2 AND TEMPERATURE ON SOIL CARBON DENSITY FRACTIONS IN A DOUGLAS FIR MESOCOSM STUDY

EPA Science Inventory

We conducted a 4-year full-factorial study of the effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 and temperature on Douglas fir seedlings growing in reconstructed native forest soils in mesocosms. The elevated CO2 treatment was ambient CO2 plus 200 ppm CO2. The elevated temperature treatm...

A Person Stands on a Balance in an Elevator: What Happens When the Elevator Starts to Fall?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balukovic, Jasmina; Slisko, Josip; Cruz, Adrián Corona

2018-01-01

Physics textbook authors commonly introduce the concept of weightlessness (apparent or real) through a "thought experiment" in which a person weighs herself or himself in an elevator. When the elevator falls freely, the spring balance should show zero weight. There is an unresolved controversy about how this "zero reading"…

4. Photograph of a line drawing in the possession of ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. Photograph of a line drawing in the possession of the Engineer's Office of the Marion, Illinois Veterans Administration Medical Center. WEST ELEVATION, SOUTH ELEVATION, EAST ELEVATION, NORTH ELEVATION; DRAWING 2-3R, DATED SEPTEMBER 4, 1940. (8 x 10 negative) - Veterans Administration Medical Center, Building No. 2, Old State Route 13 West, Marion, Williamson County, IL

Species abundances, guild dominance patterns, and community structure of breeding riparian birds

Treesearch

Deborah M. Finch

1989-01-01

I investigated trends in bird species populations, guild structure, and bird communities along a riparian altitudinal cline in the Medicine Bow National Forest of southeastern Wyoming. Streamside habitats were divided into three elevational zones: low-elevation (2050 to 2260 m) cottonwood zone, mid-elevation (2290 to 2530 m) mixed shrub willow zone, and high elevation...

DOES SOIL CO2 EFFLUX ACCLIMATIZETO ELEVATED TEMPERATURE AND CO2 DURING LONG-TERM TREATMENT OF DOUGLAS-FIR SEEDLINGS?

EPA Science Inventory

We investigated the effects of elevated soil temperature and atmospheric CO2 efflux (SCE) during the third an fourth years of study. We hypothesized that elevated temperature would stimulate SCE, and elevated CO2 would also stimulate SCE with the stimulation being greater at hig...

ELEVATED TEMPERATURE, SOIL MOISTURE AND SEASONALITY BUT NOT CO2 AFFECT CANOPY ASSIMILATION AND SYSTEM RESPIRATION IN SEEDLING DOUGLAS-FIR ECOSYSTEMS

EPA Science Inventory

We investigated the effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 and air temperature on C cycling in trees and associated soil system, focusing on canopy CO2 assimilation (Asys) and system CO2 loss through respiration (Rsys). We hypothesized that both elevated CO2 and elevated temperature...

National Elevation Dataset

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

1999-01-01

The National Elevation Dataset (NED) is a new raster product assembled by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The NED is designed to provide national elevation data in a seamless form with a consistent datum, elevation unit, and projection. Data corrections were made in the NED assembly process to minimize artifacts, permit edge matching, and fill sliver areas of missing data.

Use of Precast Concrete Walls for Blast Protection of Steel Stud Construction Preprint

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-11-01

Side Elevation Front Elevation Front Elevation Side Elevation a) Sandwich Wall b) Solid Wall I I---6’-10" " 11.. Exterior Face - Form finish 2------C...damage to the interior drywall was visible. The instnunentation consisted of three external reflected pressure gages at the front face of the test

Front Elevation and Floor Plan in 1893, 1894, and 1909; ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Front Elevation and Floor Plan in 1893, 1894, and 1909; Office End Elevation, Waiting End Elevation, Section A (1894), Section B (1894), Signage (ca. 1908-1911), Map of Rail Lines & Depots on Soldiers' Home - National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, Pacific Branch, Streetcar Depot, Corner of Pershing & Dewey Avenues, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA

Microevolution of the photosynthetic temperature optimum in relation to the elevational complex gradient

Treesearch

John H. Fryer; F. Thomas Ledig

1972-01-01

Balsam fir seedlings were grown under uniform conditions from seed collected along an elevational gradient in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Photosynthetic temperature optimum of the seedlings decreased with increasing elevation of the seed source. The change in temperature optimum with elevation was similar to the adiabatic lapse rate, suggesting a precise...

Nasadem Global Elevation Model: Methods and Progress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crippen, R.; Buckley, S.; Agram, P.; Belz, E.; Gurrola, E.; Hensley, S.; Kobrick, M.; Lavalle, M.; Martin, J.; Neumann, M.; Nguyen, Q.; Rosen, P.; Shimada, J.; Simard, M.; Tung, W.

2016-06-01

NASADEM is a near-global elevation model that is being produced primarily by completely reprocessing the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) radar data and then merging it with refined ASTER GDEM elevations. The new and improved SRTM elevations in NASADEM result from better vertical control of each SRTM data swath via reference to ICESat elevations and from SRTM void reductions using advanced interferometric unwrapping algorithms. Remnant voids will be filled primarily by GDEM3, but with reduction of GDEM glitches (mostly related to clouds) and therefore with only minor need for secondary sources of fill.

Transverse ageostrophic circulations associated with elevated mixed layers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keyser, D.; Carlson, T. N.

1984-01-01

The nature of the frontogenetically forced transverse ageostrophic circulations connected with elevated mixed layer structure is investigated as a first step toward diagnosing the complex vertical circulation patterns occurring in the vicinity of elevated mixed layers within a severe storm environment. The Sawyer-Eliassen ageostrophic circulation equation is reviewed and applied to the elevated mixed layer detected in the SESAME IV data set at 2100 GMT of May 9, 1979. The results of the ageostrophic circulation diagnosis are confirmed and refined by considering an analytic specification for the elevated mixed layer structure.

Right bundle branch block and anterior wall ST elevation myocardial infarction.

PubMed

Trofin, Monica; Israel, Carsten W; Barold, S Serge

2017-09-01

We report the case of an acute anterior wall ST elevation myocardial infarction with new left anterior fascicular block and pre-existing right bundle branch block. Due to a wide right bundle branch block, no ST segment elevation was visible in lead V1. The left anterior fascicular block was caused by proximal occlusion of the left artery descending and disappeared after acute revascularization. However, also the R' of the right bundle branch block became significantly shorter after revascularization, dismanteling a minor ST segment elevation. The ST elevation in lead V1 in anterior wall infarction and right bundle branch block may merge with the R' and cause a further QRS widening as an "equivalent" to the ST elevation.

Space Station tethered elevator system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haddock, Michael H.; Anderson, Loren A.; Hosterman, K.; Decresie, E.; Miranda, P.; Hamilton, R.

1989-01-01

The optimized conceptual engineering design of a space station tethered elevator is presented. The tethered elevator is an unmanned, mobile structure which operates on a ten-kilometer tether spanning the distance between Space Station Freedom and a platform. Its capabilities include providing access to residual gravity levels, remote servicing, and transportation to any point along a tether. The report discusses the potential uses, parameters, and evolution of the spacecraft design. Emphasis is placed on the elevator's structural configuration and three major subsystem designs. First, the design of elevator robotics used to aid in elevator operations and tethered experimentation is presented. Second, the design of drive mechanisms used to propel the vehicle is discussed. Third, the design of an onboard self-sufficient power generation and transmission system is addressed.

The role of elevated serum procalcitonin in neuroendocrine neoplasms of digestive system.

PubMed

Chen, Luohai; Zhang, Yu; Lin, Yuan; Deng, Langhui; Feng, Shiting; Chen, Minhu; Chen, Jie

2017-12-01

Elevated serum procalcitonin (PCT) was reported in patients with certain type of neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs). The aim of this study was to assess the role of elevated serum PCT in NENs from digestive system. Serum PCT and serum CgA level were measured in 155 patients with NENs from digestive system. Elevated serum PCT was found in 63 patients (40.6%). Grade 3 disease was a significant factor associated with elevated serum PCT (OR, 9.24; 95%CI, 3.04-28.08; P<0.001). Serum PCT level was significantly decreased after treatment both in patients with stable disease (P=0.003) and patients with partial remission (P=0.001). In these patients, serum PCT level significantly increased again at the time of progression disease (P=0.001). Elevated serum PCT was a significant factor of worse survival (HR, 2.86; 95%CI, 1.36-6.03; P=0.006). Compared with patients with normal serum PCT and CgA level, patients with either PCT or CgA elevated and patients with both PCT and CgA elevated had progressively worse survival. Additionally, PCT expression in tumor cells was found in 24.0% of patients but did not correlate with other clinicopathological factors, including serum PCT. Serum PCT is elevated in part of patients with NENs of digestive system, especially in patients with grade 3 disease. Serum PCT level can help evaluate treatment response and its elevation indicates poor prognosis. Combination of serum PCT and CgA can improve outcome prediction. Copyright © 2017 The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Carbohydrate reserves in the facilitator cushion plant Laretia acaulis suggest carbon limitation at high elevation and no negative effects of beneficiary plants.

PubMed

García Lino, Mary Carolina; Cavieres, Lohengrin A; Zotz, Gerhard; Bader, Maaike Y

2017-04-01

The elevational range of the alpine cushion plant Laretia acaulis (Apiaceae) comprises a cold upper extreme and a dry lower extreme. For this species, we predict reduced growth and increased non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrations (i.e. carbon sink limitation) at both elevational extremes. In a facilitative interaction, these cushions harbor other plant species (beneficiaries). Such interactions appear to reduce reproduction in other cushion species, but not in L. acaulis. However, vegetative effects may be more important in this long-lived species and may be stronger under marginal conditions. We studied growth and NSC concentrations in leaves and stems of L. acaulis collected from cushions along its full elevational range in the Andes of Central Chile. NSC concentrations were lowest and cushions were smaller and much less abundant at the highest elevation. At the lowest elevation, NSC concentrations and cushion sizes were similar to those of intermediate elevations but cushions were somewhat less abundant. NSC concentrations and growth did not change with beneficiary cover at any elevation. Lower NSC concentrations at the upper extreme contradict the sink-limitation hypothesis and may indicate that a lack of warmth is not limiting growth at high-elevation. At the lower extreme, carbon gain and growth do not appear more limiting than at intermediate elevations. The lower population density at both extremes suggests that the regeneration niche exerts important limitations to this species' distribution. The lack of an effect of beneficiaries on reproduction and vegetative performance suggests that the interaction between L. acaulis and its beneficiaries is probably commensalistic.

Limited tolerance by insects to high temperatures across tropical elevational gradients and the implications of global warming for extinction.

PubMed

García-Robledo, Carlos; Kuprewicz, Erin K; Staines, Charles L; Erwin, Terry L; Kress, W John

2016-01-19

The critical thermal maximum (CTmax), the temperature at which motor control is lost in animals, has the potential to determine if species will tolerate global warming. For insects, tolerance to high temperatures decreases with latitude, suggesting that similar patterns may exist along elevational gradients as well. This study explored how CTmax varies among species and populations of a group of diverse tropical insect herbivores, the rolled-leaf beetles, across both broad and narrow elevational gradients. Data from 6,948 field observations and 8,700 museum specimens were used to map the elevational distributions of rolled-leaf beetles on two mountains in Costa Rica. CTmax was determined for 1,252 individual beetles representing all populations across the gradients. Initial morphological identifications suggested a total of 26 species with populations at different elevations displaying contrasting upper thermal limits. However, compared with morphological identifications, DNA barcodes (cytochrome oxidase I) revealed significant cryptic species diversity. DNA barcodes identified 42 species and haplotypes across 11 species complexes. These 42 species displayed much narrower elevational distributions and values of CTmax than the 26 morphologically defined species. In general, species found at middle elevations and on mountaintops are less tolerant to high temperatures than species restricted to lowland habitats. Species with broad elevational distributions display high CTmax throughout their ranges. We found no significant phylogenetic signal in CTmax, geography, or elevational range. The narrow variance in CTmax values for most rolled-leaf beetles, especially high-elevation species, suggests that the risk of extinction of insects may be substantial under some projected rates of global warming.

Limited tolerance by insects to high temperatures across tropical elevational gradients and the implications of global warming for extinction

PubMed Central

García-Robledo, Carlos; Kuprewicz, Erin K.; Staines, Charles L.; Erwin, Terry L.; Kress, W. John

2016-01-01

The critical thermal maximum (CTmax), the temperature at which motor control is lost in animals, has the potential to determine if species will tolerate global warming. For insects, tolerance to high temperatures decreases with latitude, suggesting that similar patterns may exist along elevational gradients as well. This study explored how CTmax varies among species and populations of a group of diverse tropical insect herbivores, the rolled-leaf beetles, across both broad and narrow elevational gradients. Data from 6,948 field observations and 8,700 museum specimens were used to map the elevational distributions of rolled-leaf beetles on two mountains in Costa Rica. CTmax was determined for 1,252 individual beetles representing all populations across the gradients. Initial morphological identifications suggested a total of 26 species with populations at different elevations displaying contrasting upper thermal limits. However, compared with morphological identifications, DNA barcodes (cytochrome oxidase I) revealed significant cryptic species diversity. DNA barcodes identified 42 species and haplotypes across 11 species complexes. These 42 species displayed much narrower elevational distributions and values of CTmax than the 26 morphologically defined species. In general, species found at middle elevations and on mountaintops are less tolerant to high temperatures than species restricted to lowland habitats. Species with broad elevational distributions display high CTmax throughout their ranges. We found no significant phylogenetic signal in CTmax, geography, or elevational range. The narrow variance in CTmax values for most rolled-leaf beetles, especially high-elevation species, suggests that the risk of extinction of insects may be substantial under some projected rates of global warming. PMID:26729867

Red cell distribution width is associated with hemoglobin A1C elevation, but not glucose elevation.

PubMed

Bao, Xue; Wan, Min; Gu, Yeqing; Song, Yanqi; Zhang, Qing; Liu, Li; Meng, Ge; Wu, Hongmei; Xia, Yang; Shi, HongBin; Su, Qian; Fang, Liyun; Yang, Huijun; Yu, Fei; Sun, Shaomei; Wang, Xing; Zhou, Ming; Jia, Qiyu; Song, Kun; Wang, Guolin; Yu, Ming; Niu, Kaijun

2017-10-01

To investigate the association between red cell distribution width (RDW) and elevation of glucose/glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c). An analysis was conducted using data from a prospective cohort study of adults. People without prediabetes or diabetes (n=7,795) were followed for a mean of 2.90years (range: 1-7years, 95% confidence interval: 2.86-2.94years). Glucose elevation is defined as fasting glucose levels exceeding 5.6mmol/l, or 2-hour glucose values in the oral glucose tolerance test exceeding 7.8mmol/l. HbA1c elevation is defined as a HbA1c value exceeding a normal limit of 39mmol/mol (5.7%). Adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the association between RDW quartiles and elevation of HbA1c/glucose. The multiple-adjusted hazard ratios (95% confidence interval) of HbA1c elevation for increased quartiles of RDW were 1.00 (reference), 1.08 (0.89, 1.30), 1.28 (1.07, 1.54), and 1.54 (1.29, 1.85) (P for trend<0.0001). However, no significant association was observed between RDW and blood glucose (fasting and postprandial). Elevated RDW is independently related to future HbA1c elevation, but not to glucose elevation. This suggests that RDW may associate with HbA1c through a non-glycemic way, which should be taken into consideration when using HbA1c as a diagnostic criterion of prediabetes or diabetes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Data Elevator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

BYNA, SUNRENDRA; DONG, BIN; WU, KESHENG

Data Elevator: Efficient Asynchronous Data Movement in Hierarchical Storage Systems Multi-layer storage subsystems, including SSD-based burst buffers and disk-based parallel file systems (PFS), are becoming part of HPC systems. However, software for this storage hierarchy is still in its infancy. Applications may have to explicitly move data among the storage layers. We propose Data Elevator for transparently and efficiently moving data between a burst buffer and a PFS. Users specify the final destination for their data, typically on PFS, Data Elevator intercepts the I/O calls, stages data on burst buffer, and then asynchronously transfers the data to their final destinationmore » in the background. This system allows extensive optimizations, such as overlapping read and write operations, choosing I/O modes, and aligning buffer boundaries. In tests with large-scale scientific applications, Data Elevator is as much as 4.2X faster than Cray DataWarp, the start-of-art software for burst buffer, and 4X faster than directly writing to PFS. The Data Elevator library uses HDF5's Virtual Object Layer (VOL) for intercepting parallel I/O calls that write data to PFS. The intercepted calls are redirected to the Data Elevator, which provides a handle to write the file in a faster and intermediate burst buffer system. Once the application finishes writing the data to the burst buffer, the Data Elevator job uses HDF5 to move the data to final destination in an asynchronous manner. Hence, using the Data Elevator library is currently useful for applications that call HDF5 for writing data files. Also, the Data Elevator depends on the HDF5 VOL functionality.« less

Contribution of river floods, hurricanes, and cold fronts to elevation change in a deltaic floodplain, northern Gulf of Mexico, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bevington, Azure E.; Twilley, Robert R.; Sasser, Charles E.; Holm, Guerry O.

2017-05-01

Deltas are globally important locations of diverse ecosystems, human settlement, and economic activity that are threatened by reductions in sediment delivery, accelerated sea level rise, and subsidence. Here we investigated the relative contribution of river flooding, hurricanes, and cold fronts on elevation change in the prograding Wax Lake Delta (WLD). Sediment surface elevation was measured across 87 plots, eight times from February 2008 to August 2011. The high peak discharge river floods in 2008 and 2011 resulted in the greatest mean net elevation gain of 5.4 to 4.9 cm over each flood season, respectively. The highest deltaic wetland sediment retention (13.5% of total sediment discharge) occurred during the 2008 river flood despite lower total and peak discharge compared to 2011. Hurricanes Gustav and Ike resulted in a total net elevation gain of 1.2 cm, but the long-term contribution of hurricane derived sediments to deltaic wetlands was estimated to be just 22% of the long-term contribution of large river floods. Winter cold front passage resulted in a net loss in elevation that is equal to the elevation gain from lower discharge river floods and was consistent across years. This amount of annual loss in elevation from cold fronts could effectively negate the long-term land building capacity within the delta without the added elevation gain from both high and low discharge river floods. The current lack of inclusion of cold front elevation loss in most predictive numerical models likely overestimates the land building capacity in areas that experience similar forcings to WLD.

Watershed boundaries and digital elevation model of Oklahoma derived from 1:100,000-scale digital topographic maps

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cederstrand, J.R.; Rea, A.H.

1995-01-01

This document provides a general description of the procedures used to develop the data sets included on this compact disc. This compact disc contains watershed boundaries for Oklahoma, a digital elevation model, and other data sets derived from the digital elevation model. The digital elevation model was produced using the ANUDEM software package, written by Michael Hutchinson and licensed from the Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies at The Australian National University. Elevation data (hypsography) and streams (hydrography) from digital versions of the U.S. Geological Survey 1:100,000-scale topographic maps were used by the ANUDEM package to produce a hydrologically conditioned digital elevation model with a 60-meter cell size. This digital elevation model is well suited for drainage-basin delineation using automated techniques. Additional data sets include flow-direction, flow-accumulation, and shaded-relief grids, all derived from the digital elevation model, and the hydrography data set used in producing the digital elevation model. The watershed boundaries derived from the digital elevation model have been edited to be consistent with contours and streams from the U.S. Geological Survey 1:100,000-scale topographic maps. The watershed data set includes boundaries for 11-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes (watersheds) within Oklahoma, and 8-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes (cataloging units) outside Oklahoma. Cataloging-unit boundaries based on 1:250,000-scale maps outside Oklahoma for the Arkansas, Red, and White River basins are included. The other data sets cover Oklahoma, and where available, portions of 1:100,000-scale quadrangles adjoining Oklahoma.

Elevation and stream-size thresholds affect distributions of native and exotic warmwater fishes in Wyoming

USGS Publications Warehouse

Quist, M.C.; Hubert, W.A.; Rahel, F.J.

2004-01-01

This study was conducted to assess the influence of elevation and stream width on the occurrence of 28 native and six exotic fish species using data collected (1954-2003) from 1,114 stream reaches in Wyoming. Medians and ranges of elevation and stream width were used to assess how elevation and stream width influenced the occurrence of individual species and to indicate which species had large and small ranges of distribution. Twenty-four species were common at elevations below 1,550 m and 31 species occurred in streams less than 20 m wide. The six exotic species had the potential to overlap all of the native species with regard to both elevation and stream width. In general, species that were collected over a wide range of elevations were also collected over a wide range of stream widths. Red shiner (Cyprinella lutrensis) and river carpsucker (Carpiodes carpio) occurred over the smallest elevation ranges ( 2,500 m). Longnose sucker and white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) occurred over the greatest ranges in stream widths (> 90 m), and brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans), black bullhead (Ameiurus melas), and quillback (Carpiodes cyprinus) were found over the lowest ranges in stream widths (< 12 m). The distributions of native and exotic species in streams that transition from the Rocky Mountains to the Great Plains were largely explained by elevation and stream width.

Elevated CO2 alters distribution of nodal leaf area and enhances nitrogen uptake contributing to yield increase of soybean cultivars grown in Mollisols.

PubMed

Jin, Jian; Li, Yansheng; Liu, Xiaobing; Wang, Guanghua; Tang, Caixian; Yu, Zhenhua; Wang, Xiaojuan; Herbert, Stephen J

2017-01-01

Understanding how elevated CO2 affects dynamics of nodal leaf growth and N assimilation is crucial for the construction of high-yielding canopy via breeding and N management to cope with the future climate change. Two soybean cultivars were grown in two Mollisols differing in soil organic carbon (SOC), and exposed to ambient CO2 (380 ppm) or elevated CO2 (580 ppm) throughout the growth stages. Elevated CO2 induced 4-5 more nodes, and nearly doubled the number of branches. Leaf area duration at the upper nodes from R5 to R6 was 4.3-fold greater and that on branches 2.4-fold higher under elevated CO2 than ambient CO2, irrespective of cultivar and soil type. As a result, elevated CO2 markedly increased the number of pods and seeds at these corresponding positions. The yield response to elevated CO2 varied between the cultivars but not soils. The cultivar-specific response was likely attributed to N content per unit leaf area, the capacity of C sink in seeds and N assimilation. Elevated CO2 did not change protein concentration in seeds of either cultivar. These results indicate that elevated CO2 increases leaf area towards the upper nodes and branches which in turn contributes yield increase.

Transcriptional reprogramming and stimulation of leaf respiration by elevated CO2 concentration is diminished, but not eliminated, under limiting nitrogen supply.

PubMed

Markelz, R J Cody; Lai, Lisa X; Vosseler, Lauren N; Leakey, Andrew D B

2014-04-01

Plant respiration responses to elevated CO2 concentration ( [CO2 ] ) have been studied for three decades without consensus about the mechanism of response. Positive effects of elevated [CO2 ] on leaf respiration have been attributed to greater substrate supply resulting from stimulated photosynthesis. Negative effects of elevated [CO2 ] on leaf respiration have been attributed to reduced demand for energy for protein turnover assumed to result from lower leaf N content. Arabidopsis thaliana was grown in ambient (370 ppm) and elevated (750 ppm) [CO2 ] with limiting and ample N availabilities. The stimulation of leaf dark respiration was attenuated in limiting N (+12%) compared with ample N supply (+30%). This response was associated with smaller stimulation of photosynthetic CO2 uptake, but not interactive effects of elevated CO2 and N supply on leaf protein, amino acids or specific leaf area. Elevated [CO2 ] also resulted in greater abundance of transcripts for many components of the respiratory pathway. A greater transcriptional response to elevated [CO2 ] was observed in ample N supply at midday versus midnight, consistent with reports that protein synthesis is greatest during the day. Greater foliar expression of respiratory genes under elevated [CO2 ] has now been observed in diverse herbaceous species, suggesting a widely conserved response. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Closing the loop on elevation change at Summit, Greenland.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hawley, R. L.; Brunt, K. M.; Neumann, T.; Waddington, E. D.

2016-12-01

Surface elevation on a large ice sheet changes due to multiplephysical processes, some of which imply mass change of the ice sheet,and some not. Accumulation of new snow, in absence of otherprocesses, will increase surface elevation as new mass is added to theice sheet. Compaction of snow and firn, both new and old, has atendency to decrease surface elevation, with no corresponding changein mass. As ice flows out to the sides on an ice sheet, conservationof mass dictates that the surface elevation will decrease,corresponding to mass loss. In response to long-term changes in mass,the continental crust on which the ice rests seeks isostatic balance,resulting (since the last glacial maximum) in an increase inelevation, with no associated mass change. The summation of theseprocesses results in net elevation change.We have measured elevation change along a 12 km transect at Summit,Greenland, monthly since 2007. Along the same transect we measuredthe burial rate of stakes to determine accumulation. We havepreviously measured firn compaction over a period of 4 years, and haverecently measured differential ice motion and the resulting strain.Over the course of the measurement period, we find no significantelevation change. We do, however, find intriguing periodicities inelevation. By combining our measurements of elevation, accumulation,firn compaction, and ice flow, we attempt to "close the loop" inattributing the long-term balance of surface elevation.

Comparing non-invasive scapular tracking methods across elevation angles, planes of elevation and humeral axial rotations.

PubMed

Grewal, T-J; Cudlip, A C; Dickerson, C R

2017-12-01

Altered scapular motions premeditate shoulder impingement and other musculoskeletal disorders. Divergent experimental conditions in previous research precludes rigorous comparisons of non-invasive scapular tracking techniques. This study evaluated scapular orientation measurement methods across an expanded range of humeral postures. Scapular medial/lateral rotation, anterior/posterior tilt and protraction/retraction was measured using an acromion marker cluster (AMC), a scapular locator, and a reference stylus. Motion was captured using reflective markers on the upper body, as well as on the AMC, locator and stylus. A combination of 5 arm elevation angles, 3 arm elevation planes and 3 arm axial rotations was examined. Measurement method interacted with elevation angle and plane of elevation for all three scapular orientation directions (p < 0.01). Method of measurement interacted with axial rotation in anterior/posterior tilt and protraction/retraction (p < 0.01). The AMC had strong agreement with the reference stylus than the locator for the majority of humeral elevations, planes and axial rotations. The AMC underestimated lateral rotation, with the largest difference of ∼2° at 0° elevation. Both the locator and AMC overestimated posterior tilt at high arm elevation by up to 7.4°. Misestimations from using the locator could be enough to potentially obscure meaningful differences in scapular rotations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Winter water relations at the upper elevational limits of hemlock on Mt. Ascutney, Vermont

Treesearch

Chandra B. Vostral; Richard L. Boyce

2000-01-01

Winter water relations have been monitored in hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr.) at their upper elevational limits for three winters, 1997, 1998, and 1999, on Mt. Ascutney, Vermont. Hemlock and white pine trees (Pinus strobus L.) reach their elevational limit on Mt. Ascutney at 640 m (2100?), while the summit has an elevation of...

Refraction corrections for surveying

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lear, W. M.

1980-01-01

Optical measurements of range and elevation angles are distorted by refraction of Earth's atmosphere. Theoretical discussion of effect, along with equations for determining exact range and elevation corrections, is presented in report. Potentially useful in optical site surveying and related applications, analysis is easily programmed on pocket calculator. Input to equation is measured range and measured elevation; output is true range and true elevation.

6. Partial view of rear elevations of shops building and ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

6. Partial view of rear elevations of shops building and Hangar 1301 with rear elevation of corridor (behind power plant) connecting the hangar and shops building. Side elevations of shops and hangar as well as upper rear story of power plant and stack are visible, looking south southwest - Dover Air Force Base, Hangar No. 1301, Dover, Kent County, DE

Effects of elevation and seed source on tracheid length in young ponderosa pine

Treesearch

R. M. Echols

1973-01-01

Tracheid lengths in 30-year-old ponderosa pine progeny test plantations in the central Sierra Nevada of California were analyzed for effects of (a) elevation of seed parents and (b) elevation and location of test sites. The influence of elevation of seed parents on progeny tracheid length was not significant. Plantation location was significant, but interaction between...

Chemical and anatomical changes in Liquidambar styraciflua L.xylem after long term exposure to elevated CO

Treesearch

Keonhee Kim; Nicole Labbé; Jeffrey M. Warren; Thomas Elder; Timothy G. Rials

2015-01-01

The anatomical and chemical characteristics of sweetgum were studied after 11 years of elevated CO₂(544 ppm, ambient at 391 ppm) exposure. Anatomically, branch xylem cells were larger for elevated CO2 trees, and the cell wall thickness was thinner. Chemically, elevated CO₂ exposure did not...

The Beauty and Complexity of the Brunt Ice Shelf from MOA and ICESat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Humbert, Angelika; Shuman, Christopher A.

2005-01-01

Beginning in February 2003, NASA's Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) has determined surface elevations from approx. 86degN to 86degS latitude. To date, altimetry data have been acquired in a series of observation periods in repeated track patterns using all three Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) lasers. This paper will focus on ice shelf elevation data that were obtained in 2003 across the Brunt Ice Shelf and the Stancomb-Wills Ice Tongue. Integrating the altimetry with the recently available MODIS Mosaic of Antarctica (MOA), quantifies the relative accuracy and precision of the resulting ice shelf elevations. Furthermore, the elevation data was processed onto an elevation grid, by regional interpolation across the area s complex glacial features only. Ice thickness estimation from the altimetry of the floating ice is discussed. ICESat operates at 40Hz and its elevation data is obtained every 172m along track. These elevations have a relative accuracy of about 14cm based on the standard deviation of low-slope crossover differences and a precision of close to 2cm for the Laser 2a, Release 21, GLA12 data used here.

Accessible Transportation, Geographic Elevation, and Masticatory Ability Among Elderly Residents of a Rural Area.

PubMed

Hamano, Tsuyoshi; Tominaga, Kazumichi; Takeda, Miwako; Sundquist, Kristina; Nabika, Toru

2015-06-26

Given that public transportation networks are often worse in rural areas than in urban areas, rural residents who do not drive can find it difficult to access health-promoting goods, services, and resources related to masticatory ability. Moreover, geographical location, assessed by elevation, could modify this association. The aim of this study was to test whether the association between access to transportation and masticatory ability varied by elevation. Data were collected from a cross-sectional study conducted in Mizuho and Iwami counties, Japan. Objective masticatory ability was evaluated using a test gummy jelly and elevation was estimated by the geographic information systems according to the participant's address. After excluding subjects with missing data, 672 subjects (Mizuho = 401 and Iwami = 271) were analyzed. After adjustment for potential confounders, being a driver was not significantly associated with masticatory ability among elderly people living at low elevation (≤313 m) in Mizuho county. However, after the same adjustment, being a driver remained significantly associated with increased masticatory ability among elderly at high elevations. Similar findings were observed in Iwami county. Accessible transportation was significantly associated with increased mastication ability in elderly people living at high elevations, but not in those living at low elevations.

Evidence of high-elevation amplification versus Arctic amplification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Qixiang; Fan, Xiaohui; Wang, Mengben

2016-01-01

Elevation-dependent warming in high-elevation regions and Arctic amplification are of tremendous interest to many scientists who are engaged in studies in climate change. Here, using annual mean temperatures from 2781 global stations for the 1961-2010 period, we find that the warming for the world’s high-elevation stations (>500 m above sea level) is clearly stronger than their low-elevation counterparts; and the high-elevation amplification consists of not only an altitudinal amplification but also a latitudinal amplification. The warming for the high-elevation stations is linearly proportional to the temperature lapse rates along altitudinal and latitudinal gradients, as a result of the functional shape of Stefan-Boltzmann law in both vertical and latitudinal directions. In contrast, neither altitudinal amplification nor latitudinal amplification is found within the Arctic region despite its greater warming than lower latitudes. Further analysis shows that the Arctic amplification is an integrated part of the latitudinal amplification trend for the low-elevation stations (≤500 m above sea level) across the entire low- to high-latitude Northern Hemisphere, also a result of the mathematical shape of Stefan-Boltzmann law but only in latitudinal direction.

Measuring the role of seagrasses in regulating sediment surface elevation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Potouroglou, Maria; Bull, James C.; Krauss, Ken W.; Kennedy, Hilary A.; Fusi, Marco; Daffonchio, Daniele; Mangora, Mwita M.; Githaiga, Michael N.; Diele, Karen; Huxham, Mark

2017-01-01

Seagrass meadows provide numerous ecosystem services and their rapid global loss may reduce human welfare as well as ecological integrity. In common with the other ‘blue carbon’ habitats (mangroves and tidal marshes) seagrasses are thought to provide coastal defence and encourage sediment stabilisation and surface elevation. A sophisticated understanding of sediment elevation dynamics in mangroves and tidal marshes has been gained by monitoring a wide range of different sites, located in varying hydrogeomorphological conditions over long periods. In contrast, similar evidence for seagrasses is sparse; the present study is a contribution towards filling this gap. Surface elevation change pins were deployed in four locations, Scotland, Kenya, Tanzania and Saudi Arabia, in both seagrass and unvegetated control plots in the low intertidal and shallow subtidal zone. The presence of seagrass had a highly significant, positive impact on surface elevation at all sites. Combined data from the current work and the literature show an average difference of 31 mm per year in elevation rates between vegetated and unvegetated areas, which emphasizes the important contribution of seagrass in facilitating sediment surface elevation and reducing erosion. This paper presents the first multi-site study for sediment surface elevation in seagrasses in different settings and species.

Evaluation of the Global Multi-Resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010) using ICESat geodetic control

USGS Publications Warehouse

Carabajal, C.C.; Harding, D.J.; Boy, J.-P.; Danielson, Jeffrey J.; Gesch, D.B.; Suchdeo, V.P.

2011-01-01

Supported by NASA's Earth Surface and Interior (ESI) Program, we are producing a global set of Ground Control Points (GCPs) derived from the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) altimetry data. From February of 2003, to October of 2009, ICESat obtained nearly global measurements of land topography (?? 86?? latitudes) with unprecedented accuracy, sampling the Earth's surface at discrete ???50 m diameter laser footprints spaced 170 m along the altimetry profiles. We apply stringent editing to select the highest quality elevations, and use these GCPs to characterize and quantify spatially varying elevation biases in Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). In this paper, we present an evaluation of the soon to be released Global Multi-resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010). Elevation biases and error statistics have been analyzed as a function of land cover and relief. The GMTED2010 products are a large improvement over previous sources of elevation data at comparable resolutions. RMSEs for all products and terrain conditions are below 7 m and typically are about 4 m. The GMTED2010 products are biased upward with respect to the ICESat GCPs on average by approximately 3 m. ?? 2011 Copyright Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

Calculation and Error Analysis of a Digital Elevation Model of Hofsjokull, Iceland from SAR Interferometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barton, Jonathan S.; Hall, Dorothy K.; Sigurosson, Oddur; Williams, Richard S., Jr.; Smith, Laurence C.; Garvin, James B.

1999-01-01

Two ascending European Space Agency (ESA) Earth Resources Satellites (ERS)-1/-2 tandem-mode, synthetic aperture radar (SAR) pairs are used to calculate the surface elevation of Hofsjokull, an ice cap in central Iceland. The motion component of the interferometric phase is calculated using the 30 arc-second resolution USGS GTOPO30 global digital elevation product and one of the ERS tandem pairs. The topography is then derived by subtracting the motion component from the other tandem pair. In order to assess the accuracy of the resultant digital elevation model (DEM), a geodetic airborne laser-altimetry swath is compared with the elevations derived from the interferometry. The DEM is also compared with elevations derived from a digitized topographic map of the ice cap from the University of Iceland Science Institute. Results show that low temporal correlation is a significant problem for the application of interferometry to small, low-elevation ice caps, even over a one-day repeat interval, and especially at the higher elevations. Results also show that an uncompensated error in the phase, ramping from northwest to southeast, present after tying the DEM to ground-control points, has resulted in a systematic error across the DEM.

Evaluation of the Global Multi-Resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010) Using ICESat Geodetic Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carabajal, Claudia C.; Harding, David J.; Boy, Jean-Paul; Danielson, Jeffrey J.; Gesch, Dean B.; Suchdeo, Vijay P.

2011-01-01

Supported by NASA's Earth Surface and Interior (ESI) Program, we are producing a global set of Ground Control Points (GCPs) derived from the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) altimetry data. From February of 2003, to October of 2009, ICESat obtained nearly global measurements of land topography (+/- 86deg latitudes) with unprecedented accuracy, sampling the Earth's surface at discrete approx.50 m diameter laser footprints spaced 170 m along the altimetry profiles. We apply stringent editing to select the highest quality elevations, and use these GCPs to characterize and quantify spatially varying elevation biases in Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). In this paper, we present an evaluation of the soon to be released Global Multi-resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010). Elevation biases and error statistics have been analyzed as a function of land cover and relief. The GMTED2010 products are a large improvement over previous sources of elevation data at comparable resolutions. RMSEs for all products and terrain conditions are below 7 m and typically are about 4 m. The GMTED2010 products are biased upward with respect to the ICESat GCPs on average by approximately 3 m.

Elevation Control on Vegetation Organization in a Semiarid Ecosystem in Central New Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nudurupati, S. S.; Istanbulluoglu, E.; Adams, J. M.; Hobley, D. E. J.; Gasparini, N. M.; Tucker, G. E.; Hutton, E. W. H.

2015-12-01

Many semiarid and desert ecosystems are characterized by patchy and dynamic vegetation. Topography plays a commanding role on vegetation patterns. It is observed that plant biomes and biodiversity vary systematically with slope and aspect, from shrublands in low desert elevations, to mixed grass/shrublands in mid elevations, and forests at high elevations. In this study, we investigate the role of elevation dependent climatology on vegetation organization in a semiarid New Mexico catchment where elevation and hillslope aspect play a defining role on plant types. An ecohydrologic cellular automaton model developed within Landlab (component based modeling framework) is used. The model couples local vegetation dynamics (that simulate biomass production based on local soil moisture and potential evapotranspiration) and plant establishment and mortality based on competition for resources and space. This model is driven by elevation dependent rainfall pulses and solar radiation. The domain is initialized with randomly assigned plant types and the model parameters that couple plant response with soil moisture are systematically changed. Climate perturbation experiments are conducted to examine spatial vegetation organization and associated timescales. Model results reproduce elevation and aspect controls on observed vegetation patterns indicating that this model captures necessary and sufficient conditions that explain these observed ecohydrological patterns.

Calculation and error analysis of a digital elevation model of Hofsjokull, Iceland, from SAR interferometry

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barton, Jonathan S.; Hall, Dorothy K.; Sigurðsson, Oddur; Williams, Richard S.; Smith, Laurence C.; Garvin, James B.; Taylor, Susan; Hardy, Janet

1999-01-01

Two ascending European Space Agency (ESA) Earth Resources Satellites (ERS)-1/-2 tandem-mode, synthetic aperture radar (SAR) pairs are used to calculate the surface elevation of Hofsjokull, an ice cap in central Iceland. The motion component of the interferometric phase is calculated using the 30 arc-second resolution USGS GTOPO30 global digital elevation product and one of the ERS tandem pairs. The topography is then derived by subtracting the motion component from the other tandem pair. In order to assess the accuracy of the resultant digital elevation model (DEM), a geodetic airborne laser-altimetry swath is compared with the elevations derived from the interferometry. The DEM is also compared with elevations derived from a digitized topographic map of the ice cap from the University of Iceland Science Institute. Results show that low temporal correlation is a significant problem for the application of interferometry to small, low-elevation ice caps, even over a one-day repeat interval, and especially at the higher elevations. Results also show that an uncompensated error in the phase, ramping from northwest to southeast, present after tying the DEM to ground-control points, has resulted in a systematic error across the DEM.

Vector movement underlies avian malaria at upper elevation in Hawaii: implications for transmission of human malaria.

PubMed

Freed, Leonard A; Cann, Rebecca L

2013-11-01

With climate warming, malaria in humans and birds at upper elevations is an emerging infectious disease because development of the parasite in the mosquito vector and vector life history are both temperature dependent. An enhanced-mosquito-movement model from climate warming predicts increased transmission of malaria at upper elevation sites that are too cool for parasite development in the mosquito vector. We evaluate this model with avian malaria (Plasmodium relictum) at 1,900-m elevation on the Island of Hawaii, with air temperatures too low for sporogony in the vector (Culex quinquefasciatus). On a well-defined site over a 14-year period, 10 of 14 species of native and introduced birds became infected, several epizootics occurred, and the increase in prevalence was driven more by resident species than by mobile species that could have acquired their infections at lower elevations. Greater movement of infectious mosquitoes from lower elevations now permits avian malaria to spread at 1,900 m in Hawaii, in advance of climate warming at that elevation. The increase in malaria at upper elevations due to dispersal of infectious mosquitoes is a real alternative to temperature for the increased incidence of human malaria in tropical highlands.

Elevated CO2 stimulates marsh elevation gain, counterbalancing sea-level rise

USGS Publications Warehouse

Langley, J.A.; McKee, K.L.; Cahoon, D.R.; Cherry, J.A.; Megonigala, J.P.

2009-01-01

Tidal wetlands experiencing increased rates of sea-level rise (SLR) must increase rates of soil elevation gain to avoid permanent conversion to open water. The maximal rate of SLR that these ecosystems can tolerate depends partly on mineral sediment deposition, but the accumulation of organic matter is equally important for many wetlands. Plant productivity drives organic matter dynamics and is sensitive to global change factors, such as rising atmospheric CO2 concentration. It remains unknown how global change will influence organic mechanisms that determine future tidal wetland viability. Here, we present experimental evidence that plant response to elevated atmospheric [CO2] stimulates biogenic mechanisms of elevation gain in a brackish marsh. Elevated CO2 (ambient + 340 ppm) accelerated soil elevation gain by 3.9 mm yr−1in this 2-year field study, an effect mediated by stimulation of below-ground plant productivity. Further, a companion greenhouse experiment revealed that the CO2 effect was enhanced under salinity and flooding conditions likely to accompany future SLR. Our results indicate that by stimulating biogenic contributions to marsh elevation, increases in the greenhouse gas, CO2, may paradoxically aid some coastal wetlands in counterbalancing rising seas.

Elevated CO2 stimulates marsh elevation gain, counterbalancing sea-level rise.

PubMed

Langley, J Adam; McKee, Karen L; Cahoon, Donald R; Cherry, Julia A; Megonigal, J Patrick

2009-04-14

Tidal wetlands experiencing increased rates of sea-level rise (SLR) must increase rates of soil elevation gain to avoid permanent conversion to open water. The maximal rate of SLR that these ecosystems can tolerate depends partly on mineral sediment deposition, but the accumulation of organic matter is equally important for many wetlands. Plant productivity drives organic matter dynamics and is sensitive to global change factors, such as rising atmospheric CO(2) concentration. It remains unknown how global change will influence organic mechanisms that determine future tidal wetland viability. Here, we present experimental evidence that plant response to elevated atmospheric [CO(2)] stimulates biogenic mechanisms of elevation gain in a brackish marsh. Elevated CO(2) (ambient + 340 ppm) accelerated soil elevation gain by 3.9 mm yr(-1) in this 2-year field study, an effect mediated by stimulation of below-ground plant productivity. Further, a companion greenhouse experiment revealed that the CO(2) effect was enhanced under salinity and flooding conditions likely to accompany future SLR. Our results indicate that by stimulating biogenic contributions to marsh elevation, increases in the greenhouse gas, CO(2), may paradoxically aid some coastal wetlands in counterbalancing rising seas.

Elevated CO2 stimulates marsh elevation gain, counterbalancing sea-level rise

PubMed Central

Langley, J. Adam; McKee, Karen L.; Cahoon, Donald R.; Cherry, Julia A.; Megonigal, J. Patrick

2009-01-01

Tidal wetlands experiencing increased rates of sea-level rise (SLR) must increase rates of soil elevation gain to avoid permanent conversion to open water. The maximal rate of SLR that these ecosystems can tolerate depends partly on mineral sediment deposition, but the accumulation of organic matter is equally important for many wetlands. Plant productivity drives organic matter dynamics and is sensitive to global change factors, such as rising atmospheric CO2 concentration. It remains unknown how global change will influence organic mechanisms that determine future tidal wetland viability. Here, we present experimental evidence that plant response to elevated atmospheric [CO2] stimulates biogenic mechanisms of elevation gain in a brackish marsh. Elevated CO2 (ambient + 340 ppm) accelerated soil elevation gain by 3.9 mm yr−1 in this 2-year field study, an effect mediated by stimulation of below-ground plant productivity. Further, a companion greenhouse experiment revealed that the CO2 effect was enhanced under salinity and flooding conditions likely to accompany future SLR. Our results indicate that by stimulating biogenic contributions to marsh elevation, increases in the greenhouse gas, CO2, may paradoxically aid some coastal wetlands in counterbalancing rising seas. PMID:19325121

Evidence of high-elevation amplification versus Arctic amplification

PubMed Central

Wang, Qixiang; Fan, Xiaohui; Wang, Mengben

2016-01-01

Elevation-dependent warming in high-elevation regions and Arctic amplification are of tremendous interest to many scientists who are engaged in studies in climate change. Here, using annual mean temperatures from 2781 global stations for the 1961–2010 period, we find that the warming for the world’s high-elevation stations (>500 m above sea level) is clearly stronger than their low-elevation counterparts; and the high-elevation amplification consists of not only an altitudinal amplification but also a latitudinal amplification. The warming for the high-elevation stations is linearly proportional to the temperature lapse rates along altitudinal and latitudinal gradients, as a result of the functional shape of Stefan-Boltzmann law in both vertical and latitudinal directions. In contrast, neither altitudinal amplification nor latitudinal amplification is found within the Arctic region despite its greater warming than lower latitudes. Further analysis shows that the Arctic amplification is an integrated part of the latitudinal amplification trend for the low-elevation stations (≤500 m above sea level) across the entire low- to high-latitude Northern Hemisphere, also a result of the mathematical shape of Stefan-Boltzmann law but only in latitudinal direction. PMID:26753547

Measuring the role of seagrasses in regulating sediment surface elevation.

PubMed

Potouroglou, Maria; Bull, James C; Krauss, Ken W; Kennedy, Hilary A; Fusi, Marco; Daffonchio, Daniele; Mangora, Mwita M; Githaiga, Michael N; Diele, Karen; Huxham, Mark

2017-09-20

Seagrass meadows provide numerous ecosystem services and their rapid global loss may reduce human welfare as well as ecological integrity. In common with the other 'blue carbon' habitats (mangroves and tidal marshes) seagrasses are thought to provide coastal defence and encourage sediment stabilisation and surface elevation. A sophisticated understanding of sediment elevation dynamics in mangroves and tidal marshes has been gained by monitoring a wide range of different sites, located in varying hydrogeomorphological conditions over long periods. In contrast, similar evidence for seagrasses is sparse; the present study is a contribution towards filling this gap. Surface elevation change pins were deployed in four locations, Scotland, Kenya, Tanzania and Saudi Arabia, in both seagrass and unvegetated control plots in the low intertidal and shallow subtidal zone. The presence of seagrass had a highly significant, positive impact on surface elevation at all sites. Combined data from the current work and the literature show an average difference of 31 mm per year in elevation rates between vegetated and unvegetated areas, which emphasizes the important contribution of seagrass in facilitating sediment surface elevation and reducing erosion. This paper presents the first multi-site study for sediment surface elevation in seagrasses in different settings and species.

Factors determining extreme brain natriuretic peptide elevation.

PubMed

Guglin, Maya; Hourani, Rayan; Pitta, Sridevi

2007-01-01

Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level is elevated in heart failure and reflects its severity. It is unknown why some patients have extremely high BNP levels. The authors retrospectively reviewed data on 179 consecutive patients whose BNP levels fell within one of several predetermined ranges: mild elevation, 500 to 1000 pg/mL (n=82); moderate elevation, 2000 to 3000 pg/mL (n=48); and high elevation, 4000 to 20,000 pg/mL (n=49). The statistical analysis was conducted with the unpaired t test and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Adjustments were made for age, sex, and serum creatinine level. Patients with moderate BNP elevation were more symptomatic and had more advanced structural and hemodynamic changes than did patients with lower BNP elevation. Characteristics of the high BNP level group did not differ from those of the moderate BNP level group. Serum creatinine level correlated with BNP level, but neither age nor sex did. High BNP level (4000-20,000 pg/mL) is determined more by renal dysfunction than by the severity of heart failure.

Levee crest elevation profiles derived from airborne lidar-based high resolution digital elevation models in south Louisiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Monica; Thatcher, Cindy A.; Barras, John A.

2014-01-01

This study explores the feasibility of using airborne lidar surveys to construct high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) and develop an automated procedure to extract levee longitudinal elevation profiles for both federal levees in Atchafalaya Basin and local levees in Lafourche Parish, south Lousiana. This approach can successfully accommodate a high degree of levee sinuosity and abrupt changes in levee orientation (direction) in planar coordinates, variations in levee geometries, and differing DEM resolutions. The federal levees investigated in Atchafalaya Basin have crest elevations between 5.3 and 12 m while the local counterparts in Lafourche Parish are between 0.76 and 2.3 m. The vertical uncertainty in the elevation data is considered when assessing federal crest elevation against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers minimum height requirements to withstand the 100-year flood. Only approximately 5% of the crest points of the two federal levees investigated in the Atchafalaya Basin region met this requirement.

Influence of Elevation Data Source on 2D Hydraulic Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bakuła, Krzysztof; StĘpnik, Mateusz; Kurczyński, Zdzisław

2016-08-01

The aim of this paper is to analyse the influence of the source of various elevation data on hydraulic modelling in open channels. In the research, digital terrain models from different datasets were evaluated and used in two-dimensional hydraulic models. The following aerial and satellite elevation data were used to create the representation of terrain-digital terrain model: airborne laser scanning, image matching, elevation data collected in the LPIS, EuroDEM, and ASTER GDEM. From the results of five 2D hydrodynamic models with different input elevation data, the maximum depth and flow velocity of water were derived and compared with the results of the most accurate ALS data. For such an analysis a statistical evaluation and differences between hydraulic modelling results were prepared. The presented research proved the importance of the quality of elevation data in hydraulic modelling and showed that only ALS and photogrammetric data can be the most reliable elevation data source in accurate 2D hydraulic modelling.

Evaluation of vector coastline features extracted from 'structure from motion'-derived elevation data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kinsman, Nicole; Gibbs, Ann E.; Nolan, Matt

2015-01-01

For extensive and remote coastlines, the absence of high-quality elevation models—for example, those produced with lidar—leaves some coastal populations lacking one of the essential elements for mapping shoreline positions or flood extents. Here, we compare seven different elevation products in a lowlying area in western Alaska to establish their appropriateness for coastal mapping applications that require the delineation of elevation-based vectors. We further investigate the effective use of a Structure from Motion (SfM)-derived surface model (vertical RMSE<20 cm) by generating a tidal datum-based shoreline and an inundation extent map for a 2011 flood event. Our results suggest that SfM-derived elevation products can yield elevation-based vector features that have horizontal positional uncertainties comparable to those derived from other techniques. We also provide a rule-of-thumb equation to aid in the selection of minimum elevation model specifications based on terrain slope, vertical uncertainties, and desired horizontal accuracy.

Patterns of clinical response to PSA elevation in American Indian/Alaska Native men: a multi-center pilot study.

PubMed

Tilburt, Jon C; Koller, Kathryn; Tiesinga, James J; Wilson, Robin T; Trinh, Anne C; Hill, Kristin; Hall, Ingrid J; Smith, Judith Lee; Ekwueme, Donatus U; Petersen, Wesley O

2013-11-01

To assess clinical treatment patterns and response times among American Indian/Alaska Native men with a newly elevated PSA. We retrospectively identified men ages 50-80 receiving care in one of three tribally-operated clinics in Northern Minnesota, one medical center in Alaska, and who had an incident PSA elevation (> 4 ng/ml) in a specified time period. A clinical response was considered timely if it was documented as occurring within 90 days of the incident PSA elevation. Among 82 AI/AN men identified from medical records with an incident PSA elevation, 49 (60%) received a timely clinical response, while 18 (22%) had no documented clinical response. One in five AI/AN men in our study had no documented clinical action following an incident PSA elevation. Although a pilot study, these findings suggest the need to improve the documentation, notification, and care following an elevated PSA at clinics serving AI/AN men.

Downwash of airplane winds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Munk, Max; Cario, Gunther

1923-01-01

The data for the calculation of the air forces acting on the elevators, obtained from previous model experiments are not immediately applicable in practice, as the angle at which the control surfaces meet the air stream is, in general, still unknown. The air stream, when it reaches the elevator has already been deflected by the wings and although the velocity imparted to the air current by the wings is of negligible amount compared with the speed of flight, the air behind the wings has been deflected downwards, so that the elevators work in an airstream which is inclined in a downward direction. The angle at which the air stream meets the elevator surface is, therefore, different from, and, with the usual arrangement of elevators, less than the angle made by the elevator surfaces with the line of flight.

Elevated serum ferritin - what should GPs know?

PubMed

Goot, Katie; Hazeldine, Simon; Bentley, Peter; Olynyk, John; Crawford, Darrell

2012-12-01

Elevated serum ferritin is commonly encountered in general practice. Ninety percent of elevated serum ferritin is due to noniron overload conditions, where venesection therapy is not the treatment of choice. This article aims to outline the role of the Australian Red Cross Blood Service Therapeutic Venesection program, to clarify the interpretation of the HFE gene test and iron studies, and to describe the steps in evaluating a patient with elevated serum ferritin. After exclusion of hereditary haemochromatosis, investigation of elevated serum ferritin involves identifying alcohol consumption, metabolic syndrome, obesity, diabetes, liver disease, malignancy, infection or inflammation as causative factors. Referral to a gastroenterologist, haematologist or physician with an interest in iron overload is appropriate if serum ferritin is >1000 µg/L or if the cause of elevated serum ferritin is still unclear.

Satellite radar altimetry over ice. Volume 2: Users' guide for Greenland elevation data from Seasat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Major, Judith A.; Brenner, Anita C.; Bindschadler, Robert A.; Martin, Thomas V.

1990-01-01

A gridded surface-elevation data set and a geo-referenced data base for the Seasat radar altimeter data over Antarctica are described. It is intended to be a user's guide to accompany the data provided to data centers and other users. The grid points are on a polar stereographic projection with a nominal spacing of 20 km. The gridded elevations are derived from the elevation data in the geo-referenced data base by a weighted fitting of a surface in the neighborhood of each grid point. The gridded elevations are useful for the creating smaller-scale contour maps, and examining individual elevation measurements in specific geographic areas. Tape formats are described, and a FORTRAN program for reading the data tape is listed and provided on the tape.

The elevation and its distribution in geomorphological regions of the European Russia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kharchenko, S. V.; Ermolaev, O. P.; Mukharamova, S. S.

2018-01-01

Spatial differences of elevation were analysed by side of view of geomorphological boundaries on the European Russia territory. Geomorphological pattern of the studied territory was taken from Geomorphological Map of the USSR at scale of 1: 2 500 000. There 2401 fragments for combinations of 58 types of structural landforms and 22 types of sculptural landforms were allocated. The elevation values computed by digital elevation model (cell size - 200 m, number of cells - 322M) based on SRTM (south of 60 nl.) and GDEM 2010 (north of 60 nl.) resampled data. It was founded that some types of structural (16 types) and sculptural (6 types) landforms located in the relatively thin intervals of elevation. Using of elevation above sea level is needed for effective automatic recognizing these landform regions.

Microplastics have a more profound impact than elevated temperatures on the predatory performance, digestion and energy metabolism of an Amazonian cichlid.

PubMed

Wen, Bin; Zhang, Nan; Jin, Shi-Rong; Chen, Zai-Zhong; Gao, Jian-Zhong; Liu, Ying; Liu, Han-Peng; Xu, Zhe

2018-02-01

Knowledge on the impacts of microplastics (MPs) pollution on freshwater environments and biota remains limited. Meanwhile, freshwater ecosystems have been threatened by elevated temperatures caused by climate change. To date, no information exists on how MPs-especially under elevated temperature conditions-affect predatory performance, digestive processes and metabolic pathways in freshwater organisms. Here, we examined MPs, elevated temperature and their combined effects on juveniles (0+ group) of an Amazonian cichlid, the discus fish (Symphysodon aequifasciatus). For 30 days, fish were exposed to ambient or elevated temperatures (i.e., 28 or 31 °C) in the absence or presence of MPs (i.e., 0 or 200 μg/L). The following metrics were quantified: MPs accumulation; predatory performance; and biomarkers involved in neurotransmission, digestion and energy production. The results showed that survival rate and body length were not affected by MPs, elevated temperatures or their combination. Elevated temperatures resulted in an increase in MP concentrations in fish bodies. Exposure to MPs decreased the post-exposure predatory performance (PEPP) at ambient temperatures but not at elevated temperatures. Elevated temperatures, however, had no effect on the PEPP but antagonistically interacted with MPs, leading to similar predatory performances under present and future conditions. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity was only affected by MPs and decreased in the presence of MPs, indicating adverse effects in nervous and neuromuscular function and, thus, potentially in predatory performance. Trypsin activity was only influenced by MPs and decreased during exposure to MPs. Elevated temperatures or MPs alone increased the amylase activity but interacted antagonistically. Lipase activity was not influenced by either of the two stressors. In contrast, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity was affected by MPs or elevated temperatures alone and decreased with both stressors. Such results indicate deficits in the digestive capabilities of early-stage S. aequifasciatus under elevated temperature conditions and especially during exposure to MPs. Electron transport system (ETS) activity was not influenced by either of the two stressors. Both elevated temperatures and MPs alone increased LDH activity; however, the interaction between the two stressors cancelled activity but was still higher than activity in present conditions. Citrate synthase (CS) activity decreased with elevated temperature but increased during exposure to MPs. Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) activity was only influenced by MPs and increased in the presence of MPs. Thus, S. aequifasciatus juveniles exposed to elevated temperatures and MPs not only relied on anaerobic glycolysis for energy production but also depended on aerobic metabolism in the presence of MPs. Overall, these findings suggested that MPs showed a greater impact than elevated temperatures on the predatory performance, digestion and energy production of S. aequifasciatus. Nevertheless, juvenile survival and growth were minimally impacted, and thus, S. aequifasciatus could cope with near-future temperature increases and MP exposure. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

ELEVATING MECHANISM

DOEpatents

Frederick, H.S.; Kinsella, M.A.

1959-02-24

An elevator is described, which is arranged for movement both in a horizontal and in a vertical direction so that the elevating mechanism may be employed for servicing equipment at separated points in a plant. In accordance with the present invention, the main elevator chassis is suspended from a monorail. The chassis, in turn supports a vertically moveable carriage, a sub- carriage vertically moveable on the carriage, and a turntable carried by the sub- carriage and moveable through an arc of 90 with the equipment attached thereto. In addition, the chassis supports all the means required to elevate or rotate the equipment.

Changes in the microbial community structure of bacteria, archaea and fungi in response to elevated CO(2) and warming in an Australian native grassland soil.

PubMed

Hayden, Helen L; Mele, Pauline M; Bougoure, Damian S; Allan, Claire Y; Norng, Sorn; Piceno, Yvette M; Brodie, Eoin L; Desantis, Todd Z; Andersen, Gary L; Williams, Amity L; Hovenden, Mark J

2012-12-01

The microbial community structure of bacteria, archaea and fungi is described in an Australian native grassland soil after more than 5 years exposure to different atmospheric CO2 concentrations ([CO2]) (ambient, +550 ppm) and temperatures (ambient, + 2°C) under different plant functional types (C3 and C4 grasses) and at two soil depths (0-5 cm and 5-10 cm). Archaeal community diversity was influenced by elevated [CO2], while under warming archaeal 16S rRNA gene copy numbers increased for C4 plant Themeda triandra and decreased for the C3 plant community (P < 0.05). Fungal community diversity resulted in three groups based upon elevated [CO2], elevated [CO2] plus warming and ambient [CO2]. Overall bacterial community diversity was influenced primarily by depth. Specific bacterial taxa changed in richness and relative abundance in response to climate change factors when assessed by a high-resolution 16S rRNA microarray (PhyloChip). Operational taxonomic unit signal intensities increased under elevated [CO2] for both Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, and increased under warming for Actinobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria. For the interaction of elevated [CO2] and warming there were 103 significant operational taxonomic units (P < 0.01) representing 15 phyla and 30 classes. The majority of these operational taxonomic units increased in abundance for elevated [CO2] plus warming plots, while abundance declined in warmed or elevated [CO2] plots. Bacterial abundance (16S rRNA gene copy number) was significantly different for the interaction of elevated [CO2] and depth (P < 0.05) with decreased abundance under elevated [CO2] at 5-10 cm, and for Firmicutes under elevated [CO2] (P < 0.05). Bacteria, archaea and fungi in soil responded differently to elevated [CO2], warming and their interaction. Taxa identified as significantly climate-responsive could show differing trends in the direction of response ('+' or '-') under elevated CO2 or warming, which could then not be used to predict their interactive effects supporting the need to investigate interactive effects for climate change. The approach of focusing on specific taxonomic groups provides greater potential for understanding complex microbial community changes in ecosystems under climate change. © 2012 Society for Applied Microbiology and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Influence of postnatal glucocorticoids on hippocampal-dependent learning varies with elevation patterns and administration methods

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-05-22

Influence of postnatal glucocorticoids on hippocampal-dependent learning varies with elevation patterns and administration methods 5b. GRANT NUMBER...of these effects varies with the elevation patterns (level, duration, temporal fluctuation) achieved by different administration methods . In general...learning varies with elevation patterns and administration methods Dragana I. Claflin a, Kevin D. Schmidt a, Zachary D. Vallandingham b, Michal

The Effects of the Elevate Math Summer Program on Math Achievement and Algebra Readiness. REL 2015-096

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snipes, Jason; Huang, Chun-Wei; Jaquet, Karina; Finkelstein, Neal

2015-01-01

The Effects of the Elevate Math summer program on math achievement and algebra readiness: This randomized trial examined the effects of the Elevate Math summer program on math achievement and algebra readiness, as well as math interest and self-efficacy, among rising 8th grade students in California's Silicon Valley. The Elevate Math summer math…

The influence of plantation and seed-source elevation on wood specific gravity of 29-year-old ponderosa pines

Treesearch

R. M. Echols; M. T. Conkle

1971-01-01

Genetic, environmental, and age effects were found in 29-yr-old ponderosa pine progenies from different elevational sources, when they were grown at 960, 2730, and 5650 ft elevation in the Sierra Nevada of California. Wood specific gravity decreased as elevation of seed parents increased, and all genotypes produced significantly lower specific gravity wood in the high-...

A 10-Day Developmental Voyage: Converging Evidence from Three Studies Showing that Self-Esteem May Be Elevated and Maintained without Negative Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kafka, S.; Hunter, J. A.; Hayhurst, J.; Boyes, M.; Thomson, R. L.; Clarke, H.; Grocott, A. M.; Stringer, M.; O'Brien, K. S.

2012-01-01

Empirical evidence shows that educational experiences in the context of the outdoors lead to elevated self-esteem. Although elevated self-esteem is widely assumed to promote beneficial outcomes, recent evidence suggests that elevated self-esteem may also facilitate a variety of negative outcomes (i.e., increased prejudice, aggression, drug and…

Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide and temperature affect seed composition, mineral nutrition, and 15N and 13C dynamics in soybean genotypes under controlled environments

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Seed nutrition of crops can be affected by global climate changes due to elevated CO2 and elevated temperatures. Information on the effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on seed nutrition is very limited in spite of its importance to seed quality and food security. Therefore, the objective of this...

Sex-related and stage-dependent source-to-sink transition in Populus cathayana grown at elevated CO(2) and elevated temperature.

PubMed

Zhao, Hongxia; Li, Yongping; Zhang, Xiaolu; Korpelainen, Helena; Li, Chunyang

2012-11-01

Dioecious plants, which comprise more than 14,620 species, account for an important component of terrestrial ecosystems. Hence, understanding the sexually dimorphic responses in balancing carbon (C) supply and demand under elevated CO(2) is important for understanding leaf sink-to-source transitions. Here we investigate sex-related responses of the dioecious Populus cathayana Rehd. to elevated CO(2) and elevated temperature. The plants were grown in environmentally controlled growth chambers at two CO(2) enrichment regimes (350 ± 20 and 700 ± 20 μmol mol(-1)) with two temperature levels, elevated by 0 and 2 ± 0.2 °C (compared with the out-of-chamber environment). Plant growth characteristics, carbohydrate accumulation, C and nitrogen (N) allocation, photosynthetic capacity, N use efficiency and the morphology of mesophyll cells were investigated in the developing leaves (DLs) and expanded leaves (ELs) of both males and females. Elevated CO(2) enhanced plant growth and photosynthetic capacity in DLs of both males and females, and induced the male ELs to have a greater leaf mass production, net photosynthesis rate (P(n)), chlorophyll a/b ratio (Chl a/b), soluble protein level (SP), photosynthetic N use efficiency and soluble sugar level compared with females at the same leaf stage. Elevated temperature enhanced source activities and N uptake status during CO(2) enrichment, and the combined treatment induced males to be more responsive than females in sink capacities, especially in ELs, probably due to greater N acquisition from other plant parts. Our findings showed that elevated CO(2) increases the sink capacities of P. cathayana seedlings, and elevated temperature enhances the stimulation effect of elevated CO(2) on plant growth. Male ELs were found to play an important role in N acquisition from roots and stems under decreasing N in total leaves under elevated CO(2). Knowledge of the sex-specific leaf adaptability to warming climate can help us to understand sex-related source-to-sink transitions in dioecious plant species.

Elevated Serum PSA is Associated With Human Herpesvirus 8 Infection and Increased Circulating Cytokine Levels in Men From Tobago.

PubMed

Henning, Jill D; Karamchandani, Jaideep M; Bonachea, Luis A; Bunker, Clareann H; Patrick, Alan L; Jenkins, Frank J

2017-05-01

Serum-prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels have been used for many years as a biomarker for prostate cancer. This usage is under scrutiny due to the fact that elevated PSA levels can be caused by other conditions such as benign prostatic hyperplasia and infections of or injury to the prostate. As a result, the identification of specific pathogens capable of increasing serum levels of PSA is important. A potential candidate responsible for elevated PSA is human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8). We have reported previously that HHV-8 is capable of infecting and establishing a latent infection in the prostate. In this current study we test the hypothesis that HHV-8 infection is associated with elevated PSA levels. Circulating cytokine levels between men with elevated PSA and controls are also compared. HHV-8 serostatus was determined among men with elevated serum PSA (≥4 ng/ml; n = 168, no prostate cancer on biopsy) and age-matched controls (PSA <4 ng/ml; n = 234), Circulating cytokine levels were determined among a subset of each group (116 with elevated PSA and 85 controls). Men with an elevated serum PSA were significantly more likely to be HHV-8 seropositive (42.9%) than the age-matched cancer-free men (22.2%; OR 2.51; 95%CI 1.48-4.29, P = 00001). Comparison of circulating cytokine levels between men with elevated serum PSA and controls indicated that elevated serum PSA is associated with a pro-inflammatory response with a mixed Th1/Th2 response while HHV-8 infection was associated with significantly higher levels of IL12p70, IL-10, and IL-13 indicating a Th2 immune response. We found a significant association between HHV-8 infection and increased levels of serum PSA. In an age of patient-centered medicine, men with an elevated serum PSA should be considered for HHV-8 serology testing to determine if HHV-8 is responsible for the elevated PSA. Prostate 77: 617-624, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Technology Development and Demonstration Concepts for the Space Elevator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smitherman, David V., Jr.

2004-01-01

During the 1990s several discoveries and advances in the development of carbon nano-tube (CNT) materials indicated that material strengths many times greater than common high-strength composite materials might be possible. Progress in the development of this material led to renewed interest in the space elevator concept for construction of a tether structure from the surface of the Earth through a geostationary orbit (GEO) and thus creating a new approach to Earth-to-orbit transportation infrastructures. To investigate this possibility the author, in 1999, managed for NASA a space elevator work:hop at the Marshall Space Flight Center to explore the potential feasibility of space elevators in the 21 century, and to identify the critical technologies and demonstration missions needed to make development of space elevators feasible. Since that time, a NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) funded study of the Space Elevator proposed a concept for a simpler first space elevator system using more near-term technologies. This paper will review some of the latest ideas for space elevator development, the critical technologies required, and some of the ideas proposed for demonstrating the feasibility for full-scale development of an Earth to GEO space elevator. Critical technologies include CNT composite materials, wireless power transmission, orbital object avoidance, and large-scale tether deployment and control systems. Numerous paths for technology demonstrations have been proposed utilizing ground experiments, air structures. LEO missions, the space shuttle, the international Space Station, GEO demonstration missions, demonstrations at the lunar L1 or L2 points, and other locations. In conclusion, this paper finds that the most critical technologies for an Earth to GEO space elevator include CNT composite materials development and object avoidance technologies; that lack of successful development of these technologies need not preclude continued development of space elevator systems in general; and that the critical technologies required for the Earth to GEO space elevator are not required for similar systems at the Moon, Mars, Europa, or for orbital tether systems at GEO, Luna, and other locations.

Increases in desert shrub productivity under elevated carbon dioxide vary with water availability

USGS Publications Warehouse

Housman, D.C.; Naumburg, E.; Huxman, T. E.; Charlet, T.N.; Nowak, R.S.; Smith, S.D.

2006-01-01

Productivity of aridland plants is predicted to increase substantially with rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations due to enhancement in plant water-use efficiency (WUE). However, to date, there are few detailed analyses of how intact desert vegetation responds to elevated CO2. From 1998 to 2001, we examined aboveground production, photosynthesis, and water relations within three species exposed to ambient (around 38 Pa) or elevated (55 Pa) CO2 concentrations at the Nevada Desert Free-Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) Facility in southern Nevada, USA. The functional types sampled - evergreen (Larrea tridentata), drought-deciduous (Ambrosia dumosa), and winter-deciduous shrubs (Krameria erecta) - represent potentially different responses to elevated CO2 in this ecosystem. We found elevated CO2 significantly increased aboveground production in all three species during an anomalously wet year (1998), with relative production ratios (elevated:ambient CO2) ranging from 1.59 (Krameria) to 2.31 (Larrea). In three below-average rainfall years (1999-2001), growth was much reduced in all species, with only Ambrosia in 2001 having significantly higher production under elevated CO2. Integrated photosynthesis (mol CO2 m-2 y-1) in the three species was 1.26-2.03-fold higher under elevated CO2 in the wet year (1998) and 1.32-1.43-fold higher after the third year of reduced rainfall (2001). Instantaneous WUE was also higher in shrubs grown under elevated CO2. The timing of peak canopy development did not change under elevated CO2; for example, there was no observed extension of leaf longevity into the dry season in the deciduous species. Similarly, seasonal patterns in CO2 assimilation did not change, except for Larrea. Therefore, phenological and physiological patterns that characterize Mojave Desert perennials - early-season lags in canopy development behind peak photosynthetic capacity, coupled with reductions in late-season photosynthetic capacity prior to reductions in leaf area - were not significantly affected by elevated CO2. Together, these findings suggest that elevated CO2 can enhance the productivity of Mojave Desert shrubs, but this effect is most pronounced during years with abundant rainfall when soil resources are most available. ?? 2006 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.

Maintenance of C sinks sustains enhanced C assimilation during long-term exposure to elevated [CO2] in Mojave Desert shrubs.

PubMed

Aranjuelo, Iker; Ebbets, Allison L; Evans, R Dave; Tissue, David T; Nogués, Salvador; van Gestel, Natasja; Payton, Paxton; Ebbert, Volker; Adams, Williams W; Nowak, Robert S; Smith, Stanley D

2011-10-01

During the first few years of elevated atmospheric [CO(2)] treatment at the Nevada Desert FACE Facility, photosynthetic downregulation was observed in desert shrubs grown under elevated [CO(2)], especially under relatively wet environmental conditions. Nonetheless, those plants maintained increased A (sat) (photosynthetic performance at saturating light and treatment [CO(2)]) under wet conditions, but to a much lesser extent under dry conditions. To determine if plants continued to downregulate during long-term exposure to elevated [CO(2)], responses of photosynthesis to elevated [CO(2)] were examined in two dominant Mojave Desert shrubs, the evergreen Larrea tridentata and the drought-deciduous Ambrosia dumosa, during the eighth full growing season of elevated [CO(2)] treatment at the NDFF. A comprehensive suite of physiological processes were collected. Furthermore, we used C labeling of air to assess carbon allocation and partitioning as measures of C sink activity. Results show that elevated [CO(2)] enhanced photosynthetic performance and plant water status in Larrea, especially during periods of environmental stress, but not in Ambrosia. δ(13)C analyses indicate that Larrea under elevated [CO(2)] allocated a greater proportion of newly assimilated C to C sinks than Ambrosia. Maintenance by Larrea of C sinks during the dry season partially explained the reduced [CO(2)] effect on leaf carbohydrate content during summer, which in turn lessened carbohydrate build-up and feedback inhibition of photosynthesis. δ(13)C results also showed that in a year when plant growth reached the highest rates in 5 years, 4% (Larrea) and 7% (Ambrosia) of C in newly emerging organs were remobilized from C that was assimilated and stored for at least 2 years prior to the current study. Thus, after 8 years of continuous exposure to elevated [CO(2)], both desert perennials maintained their photosynthetic capacities under elevated [CO(2)]. We conclude that C storage, remobilization, and partitioning influence the responsiveness of these desert shrubs during long-term exposure to elevated [CO(2)].

Impacts of Elevated Atmospheric CO 2 and O 3 on Paper Birch ( Betula papyrifera ): Reproductive Fitness

DOE PAGES

Darbah, Joseph N. T.; Kubiske, Mark E.; Nelson, Neil; ...

2007-01-01

Atmospheric CO 2 and tropospheric O 3 are rising in many regions of the world. Little is known about how these two commonly co-occurring gases will affect reproductive fitness of important forest tree species. Here, we report on the long-term effects of CO 3 and O 3 for paper birch seedlings exposed for nearly their entire life history at the Aspen FACE (Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment) site in Rhinelander, WI. Elevated CO 2 increased both male and female flower production, while elevated O 3 increased female flower production compared to trees in control rings. Interestingly, very little flowering hasmore » yet occurred in combined treatment. Elevated CO 2 had significant positive effect on birch catkin size, weight, and germination success rate (elevated CO 2 increased germination rate of birch by 110% compared to ambient CO 2 concentrations, decreased seedling mortality by 73%, increased seed weight by 17%, increased root length by 59%, and root-to-shoot ratio was significantly decreased, all at 3 weeks after germination), while the opposite was true of elevated O 3 (elevated O 3 decreased the germination rate of birch by 62%, decreased seed weight by 25%, and increased root length by 15%). Under elevated CO 2 , plant dry mass increased by 9 and 78% at the end of 3 and 14 weeks, respectively. Also, the root and shoot lengths, as well as the biomass of the seedlings, were increased for seeds produced under elevated CO 2 , while the reverse was true for seedlings from seeds produced under the elevated O 3 . Similar trends in treatment differences were observed in seed characteristics, germination, and seedling development for seeds collected in both 2004 and 2005. Our results suggest that elevated CO 2 and O 3 can dramatically affect flowering, seed production, and seed quality of paper birch, affecting reproductive fitness of this species.« less

Hurricane Wilma's impact on overall soil elevation and zones within the soil profile in a mangrove forest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Whelan, K.R.T.; Smith, T. J.; Anderson, G.H.; Ouellette, M.L.

2009-01-01

Soil elevation affects tidal inundation period, inundation frequency, and overall hydroperiod, all of which are important ecological factors affecting species recruitment, composition, and survival in wetlands. Hurricanes can dramatically affect a site's soil elevation. We assessed the impact of Hurricane Wilma (2005) on soil elevation at a mangrove forest location along the Shark River in Everglades National Park, Florida, USA. Using multiple depth surface elevation tables (SETs) and marker horizons we measured soil accretion, erosion, and soil elevation. We partitioned the effect of Hurricane Wilma's storm deposit into four constituent soil zones: surface (accretion) zone, shallow zone (0–0.35 m), middle zone (0.35–4 m), and deep zone (4–6 m). We report expansion and contraction of each soil zone. Hurricane Wilma deposited 37.0 (± 3.0 SE) mm of material; however, the absolute soil elevation change was + 42.8 mm due to expansion in the shallow soil zone. One year post-hurricane, the soil profile had lost 10.0 mm in soil elevation, with 8.5 mm of the loss due to erosion. The remaining soil elevation loss was due to compaction from shallow subsidence. We found prolific growth of new fine rootlets (209 ± 34 SE g m−2) in the storm deposited material suggesting that deposits may become more stable in the near future (i.e., erosion rate will decrease). Surficial erosion and belowground processes both played an important role in determining the overall soil elevation. Expansion and contraction in the shallow soil zone may be due to hydrology, and in the middle and bottom soil zones due to shallow subsidence. Findings thus far indicate that soil elevation has made substantial gains compared to site specific relative sea-level rise, but data trends suggest that belowground processes, which differ by soil zone, may come to dominate the long term ecological impact of storm deposit.

Impacts of elevated atmospheric CO2 and O3 on paper birch (Betula papyrifera): reproductive fitness.

PubMed

Darbah, Joseph N T; Kubiske, Mark E; Nelson, Neil; Oksanen, Elina; Vaapavuori, Elina; Karnosky, David F

2007-03-21

Atmospheric CO2 and tropospheric O3 are rising in many regions of the world. Little is known about how these two commonly co-occurring gases will affect reproductive fitness of important forest tree species. Here, we report on the long-term effects of CO2 and O3 for paper birch seedlings exposed for nearly their entire life history at the Aspen FACE (Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment) site in Rhinelander, WI. Elevated CO2 increased both male and female flower production, while elevated O3 increased female flower production compared to trees in control rings. Interestingly, very little flowering has yet occurred in combined treatment. Elevated CO2 had significant positive effect on birch catkin size, weight, and germination success rate (elevated CO2 increased germination rate of birch by 110% compared to ambient CO2 concentrations, decreased seedling mortality by 73%, increased seed weight by 17%, increased root length by 59%, and root-to-shoot ratio was significantly decreased, all at 3 weeks after germination), while the opposite was true of elevated O3 (elevated O3 decreased the germination rate of birch by 62%, decreased seed weight by 25%, and increased root length by 15%). Under elevated CO2, plant dry mass increased by 9 and 78% at the end of 3 and 14 weeks, respectively. Also, the root and shoot lengths, as well as the biomass of the seedlings, were increased for seeds produced under elevated CO2, while the reverse was true for seedlings from seeds produced under the elevated O3. Similar trends in treatment differences were observed in seed characteristics, germination, and seedling development for seeds collected in both 2004 and 2005. Our results suggest that elevated CO2 and O3 can dramatically affect flowering, seed production, and seed quality of paper birch, affecting reproductive fitness of this species.

The Contrasting Effects of Elevated CO2 on TYLCV Infection of Tomato Genotypes with and without the Resistance Gene, Mi-1.2.

PubMed

Guo, Huijuan; Huang, Lichao; Sun, Yucheng; Guo, Honggang; Ge, Feng

2016-01-01

Elevated atmospheric CO 2 typically enhances photosynthesis of C3 plants and alters primary and secondary metabolites in plant tissue. By modifying the defensive signaling pathways in host plants, elevated CO 2 could potentially affect the interactions between plants, viruses, and insects that vector viruses. R gene-mediated resistance in plants represents an efficient and highly specific defense against pathogens and herbivorous insects. The current study determined the effect of elevated CO 2 on tomato plants with and without the nematode resistance gene Mi-1.2 , which also confers resistance to some sap-sucking insects including whitefly, Bemisia tabaci . Furthermore, the subsequent effects of elevated CO 2 on the performance of the vector whiteflies and the severity of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) were also determined. The results showed that elevated CO 2 increased the biomass, plant height, and photosynthetic rate of both the Moneymaker and the Mi-1.2 genotype. Elevated CO 2 decreased TYLCV disease incidence and severity for Moneymaker plants but had the opposite effect on Mi-1.2 plants whether the plants were agroinoculated or inoculated via B. tabaci feeding. Elevated CO 2 increased the salicylic acid (SA)-dependent signaling pathway on Moneymaker plants but decreased the SA-signaling pathway on Mi-1.2 plants when infected by TYLCV. Elevated CO 2 did not significantly affect B. tabaci fitness or the ability of viruliferous B. tabaci to transmit virus regardless of plant genotype. The results indicate that elevated CO 2 increases the resistance of Moneymaker plants but decreases the resistance of Mi-1.2 plants against TYLCV, whether the plants are agroinoculated or inoculated by the vector. Our results suggest that plant genotypes containing the R gene Mi-1.2 will be more vulnerable to TYLCV and perhaps to other plant viruses under elevated CO 2 conditions.

Modification of photosynthesis and growth responses to elevated CO2 by ozone in two cultivars of winter wheat with different years of release

PubMed Central

Jiang, G.M.

2013-01-01

The beneficial effects of elevated CO2 on plants are expected to be compromised by the negative effects posed by other global changes. However, little is known about ozone (O3)-induced modulation of elevated CO2 response in plants with differential sensitivity to O3. An old (Triticum aestivum cv. Beijing 6, O3 tolerant) and a modern (T. aestivum cv. Zhongmai 9, O3 sensitive) winter wheat cultivar were exposed to elevated CO2 (714 ppm) and/or O3 (72 ppb, for 7h d–1) in open-topped chambers for 21 d. Plant responses to treatments were assessed by visible leaf symptoms, simultaneous measurements of gas exchange and chlorophyll a fluorescence, in vivo biochemical properties, and growth. It was found that elevated CO2 resulted in higher growth stimulation in the modern cultivar attributed to a higher energy capture and electron transport rate compared with the old cultivar. Exposure to O3 caused a greater growth reduction in the modern cultivar due to higher O3 uptake and a greater loss of photosystem II efficiency (mature leaf) and mesophyll cell activity (young leaf) than in the old cultivar. Elevated CO2 completely protected both cultivars against the deleterious effects of O3 under elevated CO2 and O3. The modern cultivar showed a greater relative loss of elevated CO2-induced growth stimulation due to higher O3 uptake and greater O3-induced photoinhibition than the old cultivar at elevated CO2 and O3. Our findings suggest that the elevated CO2-induced growth stimulation in the modern cultivar attributed to higher energy capture and electron transport rate can be compromised by its higher O3 uptake and greater O3-induced photoinhibition under elevated CO2 and O3 exposure. PMID:23378379

Prognosis of patients with non-ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction and nonobstructive coronary artery disease: propensity-matched analysis from the Acute Catheterization and Urgent Intervention Triage Strategy trial.

PubMed

Planer, David; Mehran, Roxana; Ohman, E Magnus; White, Harvey D; Newman, Jonathan D; Xu, Ke; Stone, Gregg W

2014-06-01

Troponin elevation is a risk factor for mortality in patients with non-ST-segment-elevation acute coronary syndromes. However, the prognosis of patients with troponin elevation and nonobstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown. Our objective was therefore to evaluate the impact of nonobstructive CAD in patients with non-ST-segment-elevation acute coronary syndromes and troponin elevation enrolled in the Acute Catheterization and Urgent Intervention Triage Strategy (ACUITY) trial. In the ACUITY trial, 3-vessel quantitative coronary angiography was performed in a formal substudy of 6921 patients presenting with non-ST-segment-elevation acute coronary syndromes. Patients with elevated admission troponin levels were stratified by the presence or absence of obstructive CAD (any lesion with quantitative diameter stenosis >50%). Propensity score matching was performed to adjust for baseline characteristics. Of 2442 patients with elevated troponin, 197 (8.8%) had nonobstructive CAD. Maximum diameter stenosis was 87.4 (73.2, 100.0) versus 22.6 (19.2, 25.7; P<0.0001) in patients with versus without obstructive CAD, respectively. Propensity matching yielded 117 patients with nonobstructive CAD and 331 patients with obstructive CAD, with no significant baseline differences between groups. In the matched cohort, overall 1-year mortality was significantly higher in patients with nonobstructive CAD (5.2% versus 1.6%; hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]=3.44 [1.05, 11.28]; P=0.04), driven by greater noncardiac mortality. Conversely, recurrent myocardial infarction and unplanned revascularization rates were significantly higher in patients with obstructive CAD. Patients with non-ST-segment-elevation acute coronary syndromes and elevated troponin levels but without obstructive CAD, while having low rates of subsequent myocardial infarction and unplanned revascularization, are still at considerable risk for 1-year mortality from noncardiac causes. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00093158. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.

Effects of elevated temperature and CO2 concentration on photosynthesis of the alpine plants in Zoige Plateau, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zijuan, Zhou; Peixi, Su; Rui, Shi; Tingting, Xie

2017-04-01

Increasing temperature and carbon dioxide concentration are the important aspects of global climate change. Alpine ecosystem response to global change was more sensitive and rapid than other ecosystems. Increases in temperature and atmospheric CO2concentrations have strong impacts on plant physiology. Photosynthesis is the basis for plant growth and the decisive factor for the level of productivity, and also is a very sensitive physiological process to climate change. In this study, we examined the interactive effects of elevated temperature and atmospheric CO2 concentration on the light response of photosynthesis in two alpine plants Elymus nutans and Potentilla anserine, which were widely distributed in alpine meadow in the Zoige Plateau, China. We set up as follows: the control (Ta 20˚ C, CO2 380μmolṡmol-1), elevated temperature (Ta 25˚ C, CO2 380 μmolṡmol-1), elevated CO2 concentration (Ta 20˚ C, CO2 700μmolṡmol-1), elevated temperature and CO2 concentration (Ta 25˚ C, CO2 700μmolṡmol-1). The results showed that compared to P. anserine, E. nutans had a higher maximum net photosynthetic rate (Pnmax), light saturation point (LSP) and apparent quantum yield (AQY) in the control. Elevated temperature increased the Pnmaxand LSP values in P. anserine, while Pnmaxand LSP were decreased in E. nutans. Elevated CO2 increased the Pnmaxand LSP values in E. nutans and P. anserine, while the light compensation point (LCP) decreased; Elevated both temperature and CO2, the Pnmaxand LSP were all increased for E. nutans and P. anserine, but did not significantly affect AQY. We concluded that although elevated temperature had a photoinhibition for E. nutans, the interaction of short-term elevated CO2 concentration and temperature can improve the photosynthetic capacity of alpine plants. Key Words: elevated temperature; CO2 concentration; light response; alpine plants

Depression and Risk of Incident Asthma in Adults. The CARDIA Study

PubMed Central

Schreiner, Pamela J.; Sood, Akshay; Jacobs, David R.

2014-01-01

Rationale: Asthma is associated with depression, but the temporality of the association has not been established. Objectives: To examine the association between prevalent elevated depressive symptoms and incident asthma, and between prevalent asthma and incident elevated depressive symptoms in a cohort of young and middle-aged adults. Methods: We examined the longitudinal association between asthma and depressive symptoms bidirectionally in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) cohort. First, 3,614 participants, free of asthma, were classified by elevated depressive symptoms at the CARDIA Year-5 exam (n = 856 elevated vs. 2,758 not elevated; ages 23–35 yr) and followed for 20 years to incident asthma. Then, 3,016 participants, free of elevated depressive symptoms, were classified by self-reported current asthma status (n = 188 prevalent vs. 2,828 not prevalent) at the CARDIA Year-5 exam and followed for 20 years until onset of elevated depressive symptoms. Measurements and Main Results: The relative hazard of incident asthma among those with elevated depressive symptoms was 1.26 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02–1.56) after adjustment for covariates. When depressive status was modeled as the total number of reports of elevated depressive symptoms before the onset of asthma, the adjusted hazard ratio was 1.15 (95% CI = 1.02–1.29). The hazard of incident elevated depressive symptoms for those with asthma was no different than the hazard in those without asthma (adjusted hazard ratio = 0.92; 95% CI = 0.70–1.20). Conclusions: This longitudinal observational study points to depression as a marker of risk for incident adult-onset asthma. On the other hand, prevalent asthma is not associated with incident adult-onset depression. PMID:24456492

Effects of ambient and elevated CO2 on growth, chlorophyll fluorescence, photosynthetic pigments, antioxidants, and secondary metabolites of Catharanthus roseus (L.) G Don. grown under three different soil N levels.

PubMed

Singh, Aradhana; Agrawal, Madhoolika

2015-03-01

Catharanthus roseus L. plants were grown under ambient (375 ± 30 ppm) and elevated (560 ± 25 ppm) concentrations of atmospheric CO2 at different rates of N supply (without supplemental N, 0 kg N ha(-1); recommended N, 50 kg N ha(-1); and double recommended N, 100 kg N ha(-1)) in open top chambers under field condition. Elevated CO2 significantly increased photosynthetic pigments, photosynthetic efficiency, and organic carbon content in leaves at recommended (RN) and double recommended N (DRN), while significantly decreased total nitrogen content in without supplemental N (WSN). Activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase were declined, while glutathione reductase, peroxidase, and phenylalanine-ammonia lyase were stimulated under elevated CO2. However, the responses of the above enzymes were modified with different rates of N supply. Elevated CO2 significantly reduced superoxide production rate, hydrogen peroxide, and malondialdehyde contents in RN and DRN. Compared with ambient, total alkaloids content increased maximally at recommended level of N, while total phenolics in WSN under elevated CO2. Elevated CO2 stimulated growth of plants by increasing plant height and numbers of branches and leaves, and the magnitude of increment were maximum in DRN. The study suggests that elevated CO2 has positively affected plants by increasing growth and alkaloids production and reducing the level of oxidative stress. However, the positive effects of elevated CO2 were comparatively lesser in plants grown under limited N availability than in moderate and higher N availability. Furthermore, the excess N supply in DRN has stimulated the growth but not the alkaloids production under elevated CO2.

Electrocardiography cannot reliably differentiate transient left ventricular apical ballooning syndrome from anterior ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

PubMed

Bybee, Kevin A; Motiei, Arashk; Syed, Imran S; Kara, Tomas; Prasad, Abhiram; Lennon, Ryan J; Murphy, Joseph G; Hammill, Stephen C; Rihal, Charanjit S; Wright, R Scott

2007-01-01

The presentation and electrocardiographic (ECG) characteristics of transient left ventricular apical ballooning syndrome (TLVABS) can be similar to that of anterior ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). We tested the hypothesis that the ECG on presentation could reliably differentiate these syndromes. Between January 1, 2002 and July 31, 2004, we identified 18 consecutive patients with TLVABS who were matched with 36 subjects presenting with acute anterior STEMI due to atherothrombotic left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion. All patients with TLVABS were women (mean age, 72.0 +/- 13.1 years). The heart rate, PR interval, QRS duration, and corrected QT interval were similar between groups. Distribution of ST elevation was similar, but patients with anterior STEMI exhibited greater ST elevation. Regressive partitioning analysis indicated that the combination of ST elevation in lead V2 of less than 1.75 mm and ST-segment elevation in lead V3 of less than 2.5 mm was a suggestive predictor of TLVABS (sensitivity, 67%; specificity, 94%). Conditional logistic regression indicated that the formula: (3 x ST-elevation lead V2) + (ST-elevation V3) + (2 x ST-elevation V5) allowed possible discrimination between TLVABS and anterior STEMI with an optimal cutoff level of less than 11.5 mm for TLVABS (sensitivity, 94%; specificity, 72%). Patients with TLVABS were less likely to have concurrent ST-segment depression (6% vs 44%; P = .003). Women presenting with TLVABS have similar ECG findings to patients with anterior infarct but with less-prominent ST-segment elevation in the anterior precordial ECG leads. These ECG findings are relatively subtle and do not have sufficient predictive value to allow reliable emergency differentiation of these syndromes.

Mass tree mortality leads to mangrove peat collapse at Bay Islands, Honduras after Hurricane Mitch

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cahoon, D.R.; Hensel, P.; Rybczyk, J.; McKee, K.L.; Proffitt, C.E.; Perez, B.C.

2003-01-01

We measured sediment elevation and accretion dynamics in mangrove forests on the islands of Guanaja and Roatan, Honduras, impacted by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 to determine if collapse of underlying peat was occurring as a result of mass tree mortality. Little is known about the balance between production and decomposition of soil organic matter in the maintenance of sediment elevation of mangrove forests with biogenic soils. Sediment elevation change measured with the rod surface elevation table from 18 months to 33 months after the storm differed significantly among low, medium and high wind impact sites. Mangrove forests suffering minimal to partial mortality gained elevation at a rate (5 mm yeara??1) greater than vertical accretion (2 mm yeara??1) measured from artificial soil marker horizons, suggesting that root production contributed to sediment elevation. Basin forests that suffered mass tree mortality experienced peat collapse of about 11 mm yeara??1 as a result of decomposition of dead root material and sediment compaction. Low soil shear strength and lack of root growth accompanied elevation decreases. Model simulations using the Relative Elevation Model indicate that peat collapse in the high impact basin mangrove forest would be 37 mm yeara??1 for the 2 years immediately after the storm, as root material decomposed. In the absence of renewed root growth, the model predicts that peat collapse will continue for at least 8 more years at a rate (7 mm yeara??1) similar to that measured (11 mm yeara??1). Mass tree mortality caused rapid elevation loss. Few trees survived and recovery of the high impact forest will thus depend primarily on seedling recruitment. Because seedling establishment is controlled in large part by sediment elevation in relation to tide height, continued peat collapse could further impair recovery rates.

Flowering responses of insect-pollinated plants to elevated CO{sub 2} levels

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cushman, J.H.; Koch, G.W.; Chiariello, N.R.

1995-06-01

Elevated atmospheric CO{sub 2} concentrations have been predicted or shown to substantially influence plants, communities and ecosystems in a variety of ways. Here, we examined the effects of elevated CO{sub 2} levels on the timing and magnitude of flowering for two insect-pollinated annual plant species in a serpentine grassland. We focused on Lasthenia californica and Linanthus parviflorus and addressed three questions: (1) Do elevated CO{sub 2} levels influence flowering phenologies and is this species specific? (2) Do elevated CO{sub 2} levels affect flower production and is this due to altered numbers of individuals, flowers per plant, or both? and (3)more » Are effects on flowering due to elevated CO{sub 2} levels per se or changes in environmental conditions associated with methods used to manipulate CO{sub 2} levels? To address these questions, we used the ecosystem experiment at Stanford University`s Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve (San Mateo Co., CA). This system consists of 20 open-topped chambers - half receiving ambient CO{sub 2} (360 ppm) and half receiving elevated CO{sub 2} (720 ppm) - and 10 untreated plots serving as chamber controls. Results from the 1994 season demonstrated that there were species-specific responses to elevated CO{sub 2} levels and the field chambers. For Lasthenia californica, elevated CO{sub 2} per se did not affect relative abundance, inflorescence production, or phenology, but chambers did significantly increase inflorescence production and extend the duration of flowering. For Linanthus parviflorus, elevated CO{sub 2} levels significantly increased relative abundance and flower production, and extended the flowering period slightly, while the chambers significantly decreased flower production early in the season and increased it later in the season.« less

Spatial Patterns of Plant Litter and Sedimentation in a Tidal Freshwater Marsh and Implications for Marsh Persistence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elmore, A. J.; Cadol, D. D.; Palinkas, C. M.; Engelhardt, K. A.

2014-12-01

The maintenance of marsh platform elevation under sea level rise is dependent on sedimentation and biomass conversion to soil organic material. These physical and biological processes interact within the tidal zone, resulting in elevation-dependent processes contributing to marsh accretion. Here we explore spatial pattern in plant litter, a variable related to productivity, to understand its role in physical and biological interactions in a freshwater marsh. Plant litter that persists through the dormant season has an extended period of influence on ecosystem processes. We conducted a field and remote sensing analysis of plant litter height, biomass, vertical cover, and stem density (collectively termed plant litter structure) at a tidal freshwater marsh located along the Potomac River estuary. We completed two years of repeat RTK GPS surveys with corresponding measurements of litter height (over 2000 observations) to train a non-parametric random forest decision tree to predict litter height. LiDAR and field observations show that plant litter height increases with increasing elevation, although important deviations from this relationship are apparent. These spatial patterns exhibit stability from year to year and lead to corresponding patterns in soil organic matter content, revealed by loss on ignition of surface sediments. The amount of mineral material embedded within plant litter decreases with increasing elevation, representing an important trade-off with litter structure. Therefore, at low elevations where litter structure is short and sparse, the role of plant litter is to capture sediment; at high elevations where litter structure is tall and dense, litter contributes organic matter to soil development. Despite these tradeoffs, changes in elevation over time are consistent across elevation, with only small positive differences in elevation gain over time at elevations where the most sediment is deposited or where litter exhibits the most biomass.

Diversity and Spatial-Temporal Distribution of Soil Macrofauna Communities Along Elevation in the Changbai Mountain, China.

PubMed

Yin, Xiuqin; Qiu, Lili; Jiang, Yunfeng; Wang, Yeqiao

2017-06-01

The understanding of patterns of vertical variation and diversity of flora and fauna along elevational change has been well established over the past century. However, it is unclear whether there is an elevational distribution pattern for soil fauna. This study revealed the diversity and spatial-temporal distribution of soil macrofauna communities in different vegetation zones from forest to alpine tundra along elevation of the Changbai Mountain, China. The abundance, richness, and Shannon-Wiener diversity index of soil macrofauna communities were compared in four distinguished vegetation zones including the coniferous and broadleaved mixed forest zone, the coniferous forest zone, the subalpine dwarf birch (Betula ermanii) forest zone, and the alpine tundra zone. Soil macrofauna were extracted in May, July, and September of 2009. In each season, the abundance and richness of the soil macrofauna decreased with the ascending elevation. The Shannon-Wiener diversity indices of the soil macrofauna were higher in the vegetation zones of lower elevation than of higher elevation. Significant differences were observed in the abundance, richness, and Shannon-Wiener diversity index for the studied vegetation zones. Soil macrofauna congregated mainly to the litter layer in the low-elevation areas and in the 0-5 cm soil layer of the higher elevation areas. The results emphasized that the diversity of soil macrofauna communities decreased as the elevation increased and possess the distinct characteristics of zonation in the mountain ecosystem. The diversity and distribution of soil macrofauna communities were influenced by mean annual precipitation, altitude, annual radiation quantity, and mean annual temperature. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Effect of elevated CO₂ on phosphorus nutrition of phosphate-deficient Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh under different nitrogen forms.

PubMed

Niu, Yaofang; Chai, Rushan; Dong, Huifen; Wang, Huan; Tang, Caixian; Zhang, Yongsong

2013-01-01

Phosphorus (P) nutrition is always a key issue regarding plants responses to elevated CO(2). Yet it is unclear of how elevated CO(2) affects P uptake under different nitrogen (N) forms. This study investigated the influence of elevated CO(2) (800 µl l(-1)) on P uptake and utilization by Arabidopsis grown in pH-buffered phosphate (P)-deficient (0.5 µM) hydroponic culture supplying with 2mM nitrate (NO(3)(-)) or ammonium (NH(4)(+)). After 7 d treatment, elevated CO(2) enhanced the biomass production of both NO(3)(-)- and NH(4) (+)-fed plants but decreased the P amount absorbed per weight of roots and the P concentration in the shoots of plants supplied with NH(4)(+). In comparison, elevated CO(2) increased the amount of P absorbed per weight of roots, as well as the P concentration in plants and alleviated P deficiency-induced symptoms of plants supplied with NO(3)(-). Elevated CO(2) also increased the root/shoot ratio, total root surface area, and acid phosphatase activity, and enhanced the expression of genes or transcriptional factors involving in P uptake, allocation and remobilization in P deficient plants. Furthermore, elevated CO(2) increased the nitric oxide (NO) level in roots of NO(3)(-)-fed plants but decreased it in NH(4)(+)-fed plants. NO scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (cPTIO) inhibited plant P acquisition by roots under elevated CO(2). Considering all of these findings, this study concluded that a combination of elevated CO(2) and NO(3)(-) nutrition can induce a set of plant adaptive strategies to improve P status from P-deficient soluble sources and that NO may be a signalling molecule that controls these processes.

Selective loss of orientation column maps in visual cortex during brief elevation of intraocular pressure.

PubMed

Chen, Xin; Sun, Chao; Huang, Luoxiu; Shou, Tiande

2003-01-01

To compare the orientation column maps elicited by different spatial frequency gratings in cortical area 17 of cats before and during brief elevation of intraocular pressure (IOP). IOP was elevated by injecting saline into the anterior chamber of a cat's eye through a syringe needle. The IOP was elevated enough to cause a retinal perfusion pressure (arterial pressure minus IOP) of approximately 30 mm Hg during a brief elevation of IOP. The visual stimulus gratings were varied in spatial frequency, whereas other parameters were kept constant. The orientation column maps of the cortical area 17 were monocularly elicited by drifting gratings of different spatial frequencies and revealed by a brain intrinsic signal optical imaging system. These maps were compared before and during short-term elevation of IOP. The response amplitude of the orientation maps in area 17 decreased during a brief elevation of IOP. This decrease was dependent on the retinal perfusion pressure but not on the absolute IOP. The location of the most visible maps was spatial-frequency dependent. The blurring or loss of the pattern of the orientation maps was most severe when high-spatial-frequency gratings were used and appeared most significantly on the posterior part of the exposed cortex while IOP was elevated. However, the basic patterns of the maps remained unchanged. Changes in cortical signal were not due to changes in the optics of the eye with elevation of IOP. A stable normal IOP is essential for maintaining normal visual cortical functions. During a brief and high elevation of IOP, the cortical processing of high-spatial-frequency visual information was diminished because of a selectively functional decline of the retinogeniculocortical X pathway by a mechanism of retinal circulation origin.

Sediment infilling and wetland formation dynamics in an active crevasse splay of the Mississippi River delta

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cahoon, Donald R.; White, David A.; Lynch, James C.

2011-01-01

Crevasse splay environments provide a mesocosm for evaluating wetland formation and maintenance processes on a decadal time scale. Site elevation, water levels, vertical accretion, elevation change, shallow subsidence, and plant biomass were measured at five habitats along an elevation gradient to evaluate wetland formation and development in Brant Pass Splay; an active crevasse splay of the Balize delta of the Mississippi River. The processes of vertical development (vertical accretion, elevation change, and shallow subsidence) were measured with the surface elevation table–marker horizon method. There were three distinct stages to the accrual of elevation capital and wetland formation in the splay: sediment infilling, vegetative colonization, and development of a mature wetland community. Accretion, elevation gain, and shallow subsidence all decreased by an order of magnitude from the open water (lowest elevation) to the forest (highest elevation) habitats. Vegetative colonization occurred within the first growing season following emergence of the mud surface. An explosively high rate of below-ground production quickly stabilized the loosely consolidated sub-aerial sediments. After emergent vegetation colonization, vertical development slowed and maintenance of marsh elevation was driven both by sediment trapping by the vegetation and accumulation of plant organic matter in the soil. Continued vertical development and survival of the marsh then depended on the health and productivity of the plant community. The process of delta wetland formation is both complex and nonlinear. Determining the dynamics of wetland formation will help in understanding the processes driving the past building of the delta and in developing models for restoring degraded wetlands in the Mississippi River delta and other deltas around the world.

Plastic responses to elevated temperature in low and high elevation populations of three grassland species.

PubMed

Frei, Esther R; Ghazoul, Jaboury; Pluess, Andrea R

2014-01-01

Local persistence of plant species in the face of climate change is largely mediated by genetic adaptation and phenotypic plasticity. In species with a wide altitudinal range, population responses to global warming are likely to differ at contrasting elevations. In controlled climate chambers, we investigated the responses of low and high elevation populations (1200 and 1800 m a.s.l.) of three nutrient-poor grassland species, Trifolium montanum, Ranunculus bulbosus, and Briza media, to ambient and elevated temperature. We measured growth-related, reproductive and phenological traits, evaluated differences in trait plasticity and examined whether trait values or plasticities were positively related to approximate fitness and thus under selection. Elevated temperature induced plastic responses in several growth-related traits of all three species. Although flowering phenology was advanced in T. montanum and R. bulbosus, number of flowers and reproductive allocation were not increased under elevated temperature. Plasticity differed between low and high elevation populations only in leaf traits of T. montanum and B. media. Some growth-related and phenological traits were under selection. Moreover, plasticities were not correlated with approximate fitness indicating selectively neutral plastic responses to elevated temperature. The observed plasticity in growth-related and phenological traits, albeit variable among species, suggests that plasticity is an important mechanism in mediating plant responses to elevated temperature. However, the capacity of species to respond to climate change through phenotypic plasticity is limited suggesting that the species additionally need evolutionary adaptation to adjust to climate change. The observed selection on several growth-related and phenological traits indicates that the study species have the potential for future evolution in the context of a warming climate.

Response of tundra ecosystems to elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide. [Annual report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Oechel, W.C.; Grulke, N.E.

1988-12-31

Our past research shows that arctic tussock tundra responds to elevated atmospheric CO{sub 2} with marked increases in net ecosystem carbon flux and photosynthetic rates. However, at ambient temperatures and nutrient availabilities, homeostatic adjustments result in net ecosystem flux rates dropping to those found a contemporary CO{sub 2} levels within three years. Evidence for ecosystem-level acclimation in the first season of elevated CO{sub 2} exposure was found in 1987. Photosynthetic rates of Eriophorum vaginatum, the dominant species, adjusts to elevated CO{sub 2} within three weeks. Past research also indicates other changes potentially important to ecosystem structure and function. Elevated CO{submore » 2} treatment apparently delays senescence and increases the period of positive photosynthetic activity. Recent results from the 1987 field season verify the results obtained in the 1983--1986 field seasons: Elevated CO{sub 2} resulted in increased ecosystem-level flux rates. Regressions fitted to the seasonal flux rates indicate an apparent 10 d extension of positive CO{sub 2} uptake reflecting a delay of the onset of plant dormancy. This delay in senescence could increase the frost sensitivity of the system. Major end points proposed for this research include the effects of elevated CO{sub 2} and the interaction of elevated atmospheric CO{sub 2} with elevated soil temperature and increased nutrient availability on: (1) Net ecosystem CO{sub 2} flux; (2) Net photosynthetic rates; (3) Patterns and resource controls on homeostatic adjustment in the above processes to elevated CO{sub 2}; (4) Plant-nutrient status, litter quality, and forage quality; (5) Soil-nutrient status; (6) Plant-growth pattern and shoot demography.« less

Needle metabolome, freezing tolerance and gas exchange in Norway spruce seedlings exposed to elevated temperature and ozone concentration.

PubMed

Riikonen, Johanna; Kontunen-Soppela, Sari; Ossipov, Vladimir; Tervahauta, Arja; Tuomainen, Marjo; Oksanen, Elina; Vapaavuori, Elina; Heinonen, Jaakko; Kivimäenpää, Minna

2012-09-01

Northern forests are currently experiencing increasing mean temperatures, especially during autumn and spring. Consequently, alterations in carbon sequestration, leaf biochemical quality and freezing tolerance (FT) are likely to occur. The interactive effects of elevated temperature and ozone (O(3)), the most harmful phytotoxic air pollutant, on Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) seedlings were studied by analysing phenology, metabolite concentrations in the needles, FT and gas exchange. Sampling was performed in September and May. The seedlings were exposed to a year-round elevated temperature (+1.3 °C), and to 1.4× ambient O(3) concentration during the growing season in the field. Elevated temperature increased the concentrations of amino acids, organic acids of the citric acid cycle and some carbohydrates, and reduced the concentrations of phenolic compounds, some organic acids of the shikimic acid pathway, sucrose, cyclitols and steroids, depending on the timing of the sampling. Although growth onset occurred earlier at elevated temperature, the temperature of 50% lethality (LT(50)) was similar in the treatments. Photosynthesis and the ratio of photosynthesis to dark respiration were reduced by elevated temperature. Elevated concentrations of O(3) reduced the total concentration of soluble sugars, and tended to reduce LT(50) of the needles in September. These results show that alterations in needle chemical quality can be expected at elevated temperatures, but the seedlings' sensitivity to autumn and spring frosts is not altered. Elevated O(3) has the potential to disturb cold hardening of Norway spruce seedlings in autumn, and to alter the water balance of the seedling through changes in stomatal conductance (g(s)), while elevated temperature is likely to reduce g(s) and consequently reduce the O(3)-flux inside the leaves.

1. Statement of significance, site plan, plan, elevation, section, boxcar ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. Statement of significance, site plan, plan, elevation, section, boxcar spring details, and outhouse plan and elevation. - Woods Landing Dance Hall, 2731 State Highway 230, Woods Landing, Albany County, WY

Northeastern Exterior, Northwestern Exterior, & Southwestern Exterior Elevations, Northeastern Interior, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Northeastern Exterior, Northwestern Exterior, & Southwestern Exterior Elevations, Northeastern Interior, Southeastern Interior, & Southwestern Interior Elevations, Floor Plan, and Eastern Corner Detail - Manatoc Reservation, Vale Edge Adirondack, 1075 Truxell Road, Peninsula, Summit County, OH

5. American elevator looking east barely visible behind American malt ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

5. American elevator looking east barely visible behind American malt house with Russell-Miller flour mill to right (now Eonacara and idle). - American Elevator, 87 Childs Street, Buffalo, Erie County, NY

Radiation from wireless technology elevates blood glucose and body temperature in 40-year-old type 1 diabetic male.

PubMed

Kleiber, Catherine E

2017-01-01

A type 1 diabetic male reports multiple instances when his blood glucose was dramatically elevated by the presence of microwave radiation from wireless technology and plummeted when the radiation exposure ended. In one instance, his body temperature elevated in addition to his blood glucose. Both remained elevated for nearly 48 h after exposure with the effect gradually decreasing. Possible mechanisms for microwave radiation elevating blood glucose include effects on glucose transport proteins and ion channels, insulin conformational changes and oxidative stress. Temperature elevation may be caused by microwave radiation-triggered Ca 2+ efflux, a mechanism similar to malignant hyperthermia. The potential for radiation from wireless technology to cause serious biological effects has important implications and necessitates a reevaluation of its near-ubiquitous presence, especially in hospitals and medical facilities.

Hurricane Katrina sediment slowed elevation loss in subsiding brackish marshes of the Mississippi River delta

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKee, K.L.; Cherry, J.A.

2009-01-01

Although hurricanes can damage or destroy coastal wetlands, they may play a beneficial role in reinvigorating marshes by delivering sediments that raise soil elevations and stimulate organic matter production. Hurricane Katrina altered elevation dynamics of two subsiding brackish marshes in the Mississippi River deltaic plain by adding 3 to 8 cm of sediment to the soil surface in August 2005. Soil elevations at both sites subsequently declined due to continued subsidence, but net elevation gain was still positive at both Pearl River (+1.7 cm) and Big Branch (+0.7 cm) marshes two years after the hurricane. At Big Branch where storm sediments had higher organic matter and water contents, post-storm elevation loss was more rapid due to initial compaction of the storm layer in combination with root-zone collapse. In contrast, elevation loss was slower at Pearl River where the storm deposit (high sand content) did not compact and the root zone did not collapse. Vegetation at both sites fully recovered within one year, and accumulation of root matter at Big Branch increased 10-fold from 2005 to 2006, suggesting that the hurricane stimulated belowground productivity. Results of this study imply that hurricane sediment may benefit subsiding marshes by slowing elevation loss. However, long-term effects of hurricane sediment on elevation dynamics will depend not only on the amount of sediment deposited, but on sediment texture and resistance to compaction as well as on changes in organic matter accumulation in the years following the hurricane.

Asymmetric vitreomacular traction and symmetrical full thickness macular hole formation.

PubMed

Woon, Wai H; Greig, Denis; Savage, Mike D; Wilson, Mark C T; Grant, Colin A; Bishop, Fiona; Mokete, Bataung

2015-11-01

A Full Thickness Macular Hole (FTMH) is often associated with vitreomacular traction, and this can be asymmetric with vitreomacular traction on one side of the hole but not the other. In cross-section, the elevated retinal rim around a developed FTMH is seen as a drawbridge elevation, and this drawbridge elevation may be used as a measure of morphological change. Examination of the drawbridge elevation of the retinal rim in FTMH with asymmetric vitreomacular traction may help to clarify the role of vitreomacular traction in the development of FTMH. Cases of FTMH were identified with an initial OCT scan showing vitreomacular traction on one side of the hole only and that had a follow-up OCT scan showing progression of the hole. A tangent to the retinal surface at a distance of 700 microns from the axis of the hole was used as a marker of the drawbridge elevation of the retinal rim around the macular hole. Comparisons of the drawbridge elevation and change in drawbridge elevation between the sides with and without initial vitreomacular traction were made. There was no significant difference between the drawbridge elevation, or change in drawbridge elevation, on the side of the hole with initial vitreomacular traction compared to the side without initial traction. There is some intrinsic mechanism within the retina to link the morphological changes on the two sides of a FTMH. A bistable hypothesis of FTMH formation and closure is postulated to explain this linkage.

Incidence and predictive factors of transaminase elevation in patients consulting for dengue fever in Cayenne Hospital, French Guiana.

PubMed

Djossou, Félix; Vesin, Guillaume; Walter, Gaelle; Epelboin, Loïc; Mosnier, Emilie; Bidaud, Bastien; Abboud, Philippe; Okandze, Antoine; Mattheus, Severine; Elenga, Narcisse; Demar, Magalie; Malvy, Denis; Nacher, Mathieu

2016-02-01

The objective of the study was to determine the incidence of transaminase elevation during dengue, and its predictive factors. In 2013, a longitudinal study was performed using data from all cases of dengue seen in Cayenne Hospital. Cox proportional modeling was used. Signs of major transaminase elevation were defined as an increase in aspartate amino transferase (AST) or alanine amino transferase (ALT) concentration over 10 times the normal value (10N). There were 1574 patients and 13 249 person-days of follow-up. The incidence rate for signs of transaminase elevation (10N) was 0.55 per 100 person-days. Six patients had major transaminase elevation with AST>1000 units (0.43 per 1000 patient-days), and 73 patients (4.6%) developed transaminase elevation with AST >10N. The variables independently associated with major transaminase elevation were hyponatremia, low platelets, dehydration, hematocrit increase, food intolerance, positive nonstructural protein 1 (NS1), age over 15 years and the notion of paracetamol intake. Although very frequent, the incidence of major transaminase elevation was lower than reported elsewhere perhaps because of good access to care, or of the particular serotype causing this epidemic. The patients with transaminase elevation tended to be older, more severe and taking paracetamol. . © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Cerebral Pulsatility Index Is Elevated in Patients with Elevated Right Atrial Pressure.

PubMed

Lahiri, Shouri; Schlick, Konrad H; Padrick, Matthew M; Rinsky, Brenda; Gonzalez, Nestor; Jones, Heather; Mayer, Stephan A; Lyden, Patrick D

2018-01-01

Extracerebral venous congestion can precipitate intracranial hypertension due to obstruction of cerebral blood outflow. Conditions that increase right atrial pressure, such as hypervolemia, are thought to increase resistance to jugular venous outflow and contribute to cerebro-venous congestion. Cerebral pulsatility index (CPI) is considered a surrogate marker of distal cerebrovascular resistance and is elevated with intracranial hypertension. Thus, we sought to test the hypothesis that elevated right atrial pressure is associated with increased CPI compared to normal right atrial pressure. We retrospectively reviewed 61 consecutive patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage. We calculated CPI from transcranial Doppler studies and correlated these with echocardiographic measures of right atrial pressure. CPIs were compared from patients with elevated and normal right atrial pressure. There was a significant difference between CPI obtained from all patients with elevated right atrial pressure compared to those with normal right atrial pressure (P < .0001). This finding was consistent in sensitivity analysis that compared right and left hemispheric CPI from patients with both elevated and normal right atrial pressure. Patients with elevated right atrial pressure had significantly higher CPI compared to patients with normal right atrial pressure. These findings suggest that cerebro-venous congestion due to impaired jugular venous outflow may increase distal cerebrovascular resistance as measured by CPI. Since elevated CPI is associated with poor outcome in numerous neurological conditions, future studies are needed to elucidate the significance of these results in other populations. Copyright © 2017 by the American Society of Neuroimaging.

Biochemical acclimation, stomatal limitation and precipitation patterns underlie decreases in photosynthetic stimulation of soybean (Glycine max) at elevated [CO₂] and temperatures under fully open air field conditions.

PubMed

Rosenthal, David M; Ruiz-Vera, Ursula M; Siebers, Matthew H; Gray, Sharon B; Bernacchi, Carl J; Ort, Donald R

2014-09-01

The net effect of elevated [CO2] and temperature on photosynthetic acclimation and plant productivity is poorly resolved. We assessed the effects of canopy warming and fully open air [CO2] enrichment on (1) the acclimation of two biochemical parameters that frequently limit photosynthesis (A), the maximum carboxylation capacity of Rubisco (Vc,max) and the maximum potential linear electron flux through photosystem II (Jmax), (2) the associated responses of leaf structural and chemical properties related to A, as well as (3) the stomatal limitation (l) imposed on A, for soybean over two growing seasons in a conventionally managed agricultural field in Illinois, USA. Acclimation to elevated [CO2] was consistent over two growing seasons with respect to Vc,max and Jmax. However, elevated temperature significantly decreased Jmax contributing to lower photosynthetic stimulation by elevated CO2. Large seasonal differences in precipitation altered soil moisture availability modulating the complex effects of elevated temperature and CO2 on biochemical and structural properties related to A. Elevated temperature also reduced the benefit of elevated [CO2] by eliminating decreases in stomatal limitation at elevated [CO2]. These results highlight the critical importance of considering multiple environmental factors (i.e. temperature, moisture, [CO2]) when trying to predict plant productivity in the context of climate change. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Remote measurement of canopy reflectance shows the effects of elevated carbon dioxide and ozone on the structure and functioning of soybeans in a field setting.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gray, S.; Dermody, O.; Delucia, E.

2006-12-01

By altering physiological processes and modifying canopy structure, elevated atmospheric CO2 and O3 directly and indirectly change the productivity of agroecosystems. Remote sensing of canopy reflectance can be used to monitor physiological and structural changes in an ecosystem over a growing season. To examine effects of changing tropospheric chemistry on water content, chlorophyll content, and changes in leaf area index (LAI), Free-Air Concentration Enrichment (FACE) technology was used to expose large plots of soybean (Glycine max) to elevated atmospheric CO2, elevated O3 (1.5 x ambient), and combined elevated CO2 and O3. The following indices were calculated from weekly measurements of reflectance: water index (WI), photochemical reflectance index (PRI), chlorophyll index, near-infrared/ red (NIR/red), and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). NIR/red and LAI were strongly correlated throughout the growth season; however NDVI and LAI were highly correlated only up to LAI of 3. Exposure to elevated CO2 accelerated early-season canopy development and delayed late-season senescence. Growth in elevated O3 had the opposite effect. Additionally, elevated CO2 compensated for negative effects of O3 when the canopy was exposed to both gases simultaneously. Reflectance indices revealed several physiological and structural responses of this agroecosystem to tropospheric change, and ultimately that elevated CO2 and O3 significantly affected this system's productivity and period for carbon gain.

Climatic role of terrestrial ecosystem under elevated CO2 : a bottom-up greenhouse gases budget.

PubMed

Liu, Shuwei; Ji, Cheng; Wang, Cong; Chen, Jie; Jin, Yaguo; Zou, Ziheng; Li, Shuqing; Niu, Shuli; Zou, Jianwen

2018-05-07

The net balance of greenhouse gas (GHG) exchanges between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere under elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) remains poorly understood. Here, we synthesise 1655 measurements from 169 published studies to assess GHGs budget of terrestrial ecosystems under elevated CO 2 . We show that elevated CO 2 significantly stimulates plant C pool (NPP) by 20%, soil CO 2 fluxes by 24%, and methane (CH 4 ) fluxes by 34% from rice paddies and by 12% from natural wetlands, while it slightly decreases CH 4 uptake of upland soils by 3.8%. Elevated CO 2 causes insignificant increases in soil nitrous oxide (N 2 O) fluxes (4.6%), soil organic C (4.3%) and N (3.6%) pools. The elevated CO 2 -induced increase in GHG emissions may decline with CO 2 enrichment levels. An elevated CO 2 -induced rise in soil CH 4 and N 2 O emissions (2.76 Pg CO 2 -equivalent year -1 ) could negate soil C enrichment (2.42 Pg CO 2 year -1 ) or reduce mitigation potential of terrestrial net ecosystem production by as much as 69% (NEP, 3.99 Pg CO 2 year -1 ) under elevated CO 2 . Our analysis highlights that the capacity of terrestrial ecosystems to act as a sink to slow climate warming under elevated CO 2 might have been largely offset by its induced increases in soil GHGs source strength. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd/CNRS.

Trait-based diversification shifts reflect differential extinction among fossil taxa.

PubMed

Wagner, Peter J; Estabrook, George F

2014-11-18

Evolution provides many cases of apparent shifts in diversification associated with particular anatomical traits. Three general models connect these patterns to anatomical evolution: (i) elevated net extinction of taxa bearing particular traits, (ii) elevated net speciation of taxa bearing particular traits, and (iii) elevated evolvability expanding the range of anatomies available to some species. Trait-based diversification shifts predict elevated hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility (i.e., primitive→derived→highly derived sequences) among pairs of anatomical characters. The three specific models further predict (i) early loss of diversity for taxa retaining primitive conditions (elevated net extinction), (ii) increased diversification among later members of a clade (elevated net speciation), and (iii) increased disparity among later members in a clade (elevated evolvability). Analyses of 319 anatomical and stratigraphic datasets for fossil species and genera show that hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility exceeds the expectations of trait-independent diversification in the vast majority of cases, which was expected if trait-dependent diversification shifts are common. Excess hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility correlates with early loss of diversity for groups retaining primitive conditions rather than delayed bursts of diversity or disparity across entire clades. Cambrian clades (predominantly trilobites) alone fit null expectations well. However, it is not clear whether evolution was unusual among Cambrian taxa or only early trilobites. At least among post-Cambrian taxa, these results implicate models, such as competition and extinction selectivity/resistance, as major drivers of trait-based diversification shifts at the species and genus levels while contradicting the predictions of elevated net speciation and elevated evolvability models.

Elevated CO2 changes interspecific competition among three species of wheat aphids: Sitobion avenae, Rhopalosiphum padi, and Schizaphis graminum.

PubMed

Sun, Yu Cheng; Chen, Fa Jun; Ge, Feng

2009-02-01

Effects of elevated CO2 (twice ambient) on the interspecific competition among three species of wheat aphids (Sitobion avenae, Rhopalosiphum padi, and Schizaphis graminum) and on wheat-aphid interactions were studied. Wheat plants had higher biomass and yield and lower water and nitrogen content of grain when grown under elevated CO2 than under ambient CO2; levels of condensed tannins, total phenols, and total nonstructural carbohydrates were also higher in wheat ears under elevated CO2. Compared with ambient CO2, elevated CO2 increased the abundance of R. padi when introduced solely but reduced its abundance when S. avenae was also present. The spatial distribution of wheat aphids was apparently influenced by CO2 levels, with significantly more S. avenae on ears and a more even distribution of R. padi on wheat plants under elevated CO2 versus ambient CO2. Elevated CO2 did not affect the abundance and spatial distribution of S. graminus when inoculated solely. Moreover, when S. avenae was present with either R. padi or S. graminum, spatial niche overlap was significantly decreased with elevated CO2. When three species co-occurred, elevated CO2 reduced spatial niche overlap between S. avenae and S. graminum and between R. padi and S. graminum. Our results suggest that increases in atmospheric CO2 would alleviate interspecific competition for these cases, which would accentuate the abundance of and the damage caused by these wheat aphids.

Sucralose, an activator of the glucose-sensing receptor, increases ATP by calcium-dependent and -independent mechanisms.

PubMed

Li, Longfei; Ohtsu, Yoshiaki; Nakagawa, Yuko; Masuda, Katsuyoshi; Kojima, Itaru

2016-08-31

Sucralose is an artificial sweetener and activates the glucose-sensing receptor expressed in pancreatic β-cells. Although sucralose does not enter β-cells nor acts as a substrate for glucokinase, it induces a marked elevation of intracellular ATP ([ATP]c). The present study was conducted to identify the signaling pathway responsible for the elevation of [ATP]c induced by sucralose. Previous studies have shown that sucralose elevates cyclic AMP (cAMP), activates phospholipase C (PLC) and stimulates Ca(2+) entry by a Na(+)-dependent mechanism in MIN6 cells. The addition of forskolin induced a marked elevation of cAMP, whereas it did not affect [ATP]c. Carbachol, an activator of PLC, did not increase [ATP]c. In addition, activation of protein kinase C by dioctanoylglycerol did not affect [ATP]c. In contrast, nifedipine, an inhibitor of the voltage-dependent Ca(2+) channel, significantly reduced [ATP]c response to sucralose. Removal of extracellular Na(+) nearly completely blocked sucralose-induced elevation of [ATP]c. Stimulation of Na(+) entry by adding a Na(+) ionophore monensin elevated [ATP]c. The monensin-induced elevation of [ATP]c was only partially inhibited by nifedipine and loading of BAPTA, both of which completely abolished elevation of [Ca(2+)]c. These results suggest that Na(+) entry is critical for the sucralose-induced elevation of [ATP]c. Both calcium-dependent and -independent mechanisms are involved in the action of sucralose.

Elevated arterial blood pressure after superior cavo-pulmonary anastomosis is associated with elevated pulmonary artery pressure and cerebrovascular dysautoregulation.

PubMed

Cabrera, Antonio G; Kibler, Kathleen K; Blaine Easley, R; Goldsworthy, Michelle; Shekerdemian, Lara S; Andropoulos, Dean B; Heinle, Jeffrey; Gottlieb, Erin A; Vu, Eric; Brady, Ken M

2018-04-18

BackgroundElevated arterial blood pressure (ABP) is common after superior bidirectional cavopulmonary anastomosis (BCPA). The effects of elevated ABP after BCPA on cerebrovascular hemodynamics are unknown. We sought to determine the relationship between elevated ABP and cerebrovascular autoregulation after BCPA.MethodsProspective, observational study on infants with single-ventricle physiology after BCPA surgery. Continuous recordings of mean ABP, mean cavopulmonary artery pressure (PAP), near-infrared spectroscopy measures of cerebral oximetry (regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO 2 )), and relative cerebral blood volume index were obtained from admission to extubation. Autoregulation was measured as hemoglobin volume index (HVx). Physiologic variables, including the HVx, were tested for variance across ABP.ResultsSixteen subjects were included in the study. Elevated ABP post-BCPA was associated with both, elevated PAP (P<0.0001) and positive HVx (dysautoregulation; P<0.0001). No association was observed between ABP and alterations in rSO 2 . Using piecewise regression, the relationship of PAP to ABP demonstrated a breakpoint at 68 mm Hg (interquartile range (IQR) 62-70 mm Hg). Curve fit of HVx as a function of ABP identified optimal ABP supporting robust autoregulation at a median ABP of 55 mm Hg (IQR 51-64 mm Hg).ConclusionsElevated ABP post-BCPA is associated with cerebrovascular dysautoregulation, and elevated PAP. The effects, of prolonged dysautoregulation within this population, require further study.Pediatric Research advance online publication, 18 April 2018; doi:10.1038/pr.2018.31.

Application of Geographic Information System Methods to Identify Areas Yielding Water that will be Replaced by Water from the Colorado River in the Vidal and Chemehuevi Areas, California, and the Mohave Mesa Area, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Spangler, Lawrence E.; Angeroth, Cory E.; Walton, Sarah J.

2008-01-01

Relations between the elevation of the static water level in wells and the elevation of the accounting surface within the Colorado River aquifer in the vicinity of Vidal, California, the Chemehuevi Indian Reservation, California, and on Mohave Mesa, Arizona, were used to determine which wells outside the flood plain of the Colorado River are presumed to yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River. Wells that have a static water-level elevation equal to or below the elevation of the accounting surface are presumed to yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River. Geographic Information System (GIS) interpolation tools were used to produce maps of areas where water levels are above, below, and near (within ? 0.84 foot) the accounting surface. Calculated water-level elevations and interpolated accounting-surface elevations were determined for 33 wells in the vicinity of Vidal, 16 wells in the Chemehuevi area, and 35 wells on Mohave Mesa. Water-level measurements generally were taken in the last 10 years with steel and electrical tapes accurate to within hundredths of a foot. A Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) was used to determine land-surface elevations to within an operational accuracy of ? 0.43 foot, resulting in calculated water-level elevations having a 95-percent confidence interval of ? 0.84 foot. In the Vidal area, differences in elevation between the accounting surface and measured water levels range from -2.7 feet below to as much as 17.6 feet above the accounting surface. Relative differences between the elevation of the water level and the elevation of the accounting surface decrease from west to east and from north to south. In the Chemehuevi area, differences in elevation range from -3.7 feet below to as much as 8.7 feet above the accounting surface, which is established at 449.6 feet in the vicinity of Lake Havasu. In all of the Mohave Mesa area, the water-level elevation is near or below the elevation of the accounting surface. Differences in elevation between water levels and the accounting surface range from -0.2 to -11.3 feet, with most values exceeding -7.0 feet. In general, the ArcGIS Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) Contour and Natural Neighbor tools reasonably represent areas where the elevation of water levels in wells is above, below, and near (within ? 0.84 foot) the elevation of the accounting surface in the Vidal and Chemehuevi study areas and accurately delineate areas around outlying wells and where anomalies exist. The TIN Contour tool provides a strict linear interpolation while the Natural Neighbor tool provides a smoothed interpolation. Using the default options in ArcGIS, the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) and Spline tools also reasonably represent areas above, below, and near the accounting surface in the Vidal and Chemehuevi areas. However, spatial extent of and boundaries between areas above, below, and near the accounting surface vary among the GIS methods, which results largely from the fundamentally different mathematical approaches used by these tools. The limited number and spatial distribution of wells in comparison to the size of the areas, and the locations and relative differences in elevation between water levels and the accounting surface of wells with anomalous water levels also influence the contouring by each of these methods. Qualitatively, the Natural Neighbor tool appears to provide the best representation of the difference between water-level and accounting-surface elevations in the study areas, on the basis of available well data.

48. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

48. Photograph of an original construction drawing, dated August 1927, in the possession of Facilities Planning Office, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. ELEVATIONS CROSS SECTIONS THROUGH COURTYARD SHOWING EAST ELEVATION OF FRONT (WEST) PORTION OF BUILDING, SOUTH ELEVATION OF NORTH WING, NORTH ELEVATION OF SOUTH WING, PLOT PLAN, AND DETAILS; SHEET NO. 6 OF 10 - Dairy Industry Building, Iowa State University campus, Ames, Story County, IA

Elevated nitrogen allows the weak invasive plant Galinsoga quadriradiata to become more vigorous with respect to inter-specific competition.

PubMed

Liu, Gang; Yang, Ying-Bo; Zhu, Zhi-Hong

2018-02-16

Elevated nitrogen associated with global change is believed to promote the invasion of many vigorous exotic plants. However, it is unclear how a weak exotic plant will respond to elevated nitrogen in the future. In this study, the competitive outcome of a weak invasive plant (Galinsoga quadriradiata) and two non-invasive plants was detected. The plants were subjected to 3 types of culture (mixed, monoculture or one-plant), 2 levels of nitrogen (ambient or elevated at a rate of 2 g m -2 yr -1 ) and 2 levels of light (65% shade or full sunlight). The results showed that elevated nitrogen significantly promoted the growth of both the weak invader and the non-invasive plants in one-plant pots; however, growth promotion was not observed for the non-invasive species in the mixed culture pots. The presence of G. quadriradiata significantly inhibited the growth of the non-invasive plants, and a decreased negative species interaction was detected as a result of elevated nitrogen. Our results suggest that competitive interactions between G. quadriradiata and the non-invasive plants were altered by elevated nitrogen. It provides exceptional evidence that an initially weak invasive plant can become an aggressive invader through elevated nitrogen deposition.

Effect of elevated CO2, O3, and UV radiation on soils.

PubMed

Formánek, Pavel; Rejšek, Klement; Vranová, Valerie

2014-01-01

In this work, we have attempted to review the current knowledge on the impact of elevated CO2, O3, and UV on soils. Elevated CO2 increases labile and stabile soil C pool as well as efficiency of organic pollutants rhizoremediation and phytoextraction of heavy metals. Conversely, both elevated O3 and UV radiation decrease inputs of assimilates to the rhizosphere being accompanied by inhibitory effects on decomposition processes, rhizoremediation, and heavy metals phytoextraction efficiency. Contrary to elevated CO2, O3, or UV-B decreases soil microbial biomass, metabolisable C, and soil N t content leading to higher C/N of soil organic matter. Elevated UV-B radiation shifts soil microbial community and decreases populations of soil meso- and macrofauna via direct effect rather than by induced changes of litter quality and root exudation as in case of elevated CO2 or O3. CO2 enrichment or increased UV-B is hypothesised to stimulate or inhibit both plant and microbial competitiveness for soluble soil N, respectively, whereas O3 favours only microbial competitive efficiency. Understanding the consequences of elevated CO2, O3, and UV radiation for soils, especially those related to fertility, phytotoxins inputs, elements cycling, plant-microbe interactions, and decontamination of polluted sites, presents a knowledge gap for future research.

Trend of Elevator-Related Accidents in Tehran

PubMed Central

Khaji, Ali; Ghodsi, Syyed Mohammad

2014-01-01

Background: Elevator-related accidents are uncommon, but can cause significant injury. However, little data exist on these types of accidents. To compile and analyze accident data involving elevators in an effort to eliminate or at least significantly reduce such accidents. Methods: In this retrospective study we investigated 1,819 cases of elevator-related accidents during a four-year period (1999-2003) in Tehran. The data were obtained from the Tehran Safety Services & Fire Fighting Organization (TSFO) that is officially and solely responsible to conduct rescue missions of civilians in Tehran. Results: The number of elevator accidents has increased steadily during the four year study period. During these four years there was a positive upward trend for serious injuries and mortality resulting from elevator accidents. Technical problems were the main cause with 74.5%, followed by power loss and overcapacity riding with 11.5% and 7.9% respectively. Sixty-three individuals sustained serious injury and 15 people died as a result of elevator accidents. The number of accidents was significantly higher in summer (x2=18.32, P=0.032) and a considerable proportion of incidences (54%, 947 cases out of 1819) occurred between 5 and 12 pm. Conclusions: Establishment of an organization to inspect the settings, maintenance, and repair of elevators is necessary. PMID:25207331

Shake Table Testing of an Elevator System in a Full-Scale Five-Story Building

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiang; Hutchinson, Tara C.; Astroza, Rodrigo; Conte, Joel P.; Restrepo, José I.; Hoehler, Matthew S.; Ribeiro, Waldir

2016-01-01

SUMMARY This paper investigates the seismic performance of a functional traction elevator as part of a full-scale five-story building shake table test program. The test building was subjected to a suite of earthquake input motions of increasing intensity, first while the building was isolated at its base, and subsequently while it was fixed to the shake table platen. In addition, low-amplitude white noise base excitation tests were conducted while the elevator system was placed in three different configurations, namely, by varying the vertical location of its cabin and counterweight, to study the acceleration amplifications of the elevator components due to dynamic excitations. During the earthquake tests, detailed observation of the physical damage and operability of the elevator as well as its measured response are reported. Although the cabin and counterweight sustained large accelerations due to impact during these tests, the use of well-restrained guide shoes demonstrated its effectiveness in preventing the cabin and counterweight from derailment during high-intensity earthquake shaking. However, differential displacements induced by the building imposed undesirable distortion of the elevator components and their surrounding support structure, which caused damage and inoperability of the elevator doors. It is recommended that these aspects be explicitly considered in elevator seismic design. PMID:28242957

Elevated temperature altered photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizopshere soil under cadmium stress.

PubMed

Jia, Xia; Zhao, YongHua; Wang, WenKe; He, Yunhua

2015-09-23

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring on photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and on organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under cadmium (Cd) stress. Elevated temperature was associated with increased soluble sugars, reducing sugars, starch, and total sugars, and with decreased amino acids in wheat seedlings under Cd stress. Elevated temperature improved total soluble sugars, free amino acids, soluble phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress. The activity of amylase, phenol oxidase, invertase, β-glucosidase, and l-asparaginase in rhizosphere soil was significantly improved by elevated temperature under Cd stress; while cellulase, neutral phosphatase, and urease activity significantly decreased. Elevated temperature significantly improved bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, and total microorganisms abundance and fluorescein diacetate activity under Cd stress. In conclusion, slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring improved the carbohydrate levels in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress in the short term. In addition, elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring stimulated available Cd by affecting pH, DOC, phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil, which resulted in the improvement of the Cd uptake by wheat seedlings.

Mountain chickadees from different elevations sing different songs: acoustic adaptation, temporal drift or signal of local adaptation?

PubMed Central

Branch, Carrie L.; Pravosudov, Vladimir V.

2015-01-01

Song in songbirds is widely thought to function in mate choice and male–male competition. Song is also phenotypically plastic and typically learned from local adults; therefore, it varies across geographical space and can serve as a cue for an individual's location of origin, with females commonly preferring males from their respective location. Geographical variation in song dialect may reflect acoustic adaptation to different environments and/or serve as a signal of local adaptation. In montane environments, environmental differences can occur over an elevation gradient, favouring local adaptations across small spatial scales. We tested whether food caching mountain chickadees, known to exhibit elevation-related differences in food caching intensity, spatial memory and the hippocampus, also sing different dialects despite continuous distribution and close proximity. Male songs were collected from high and low elevations at two different mountains (separated by 35 km) to test whether song differs between elevations and/or between adjacent populations at each mountain. Song structure varied significantly between high and low elevation adjacent populations from the same mountain and between populations from different mountains at the same elevations, despite a continuous distribution across each mountain slope. These results suggest that elevation-related differences in song structure in chickadees might serve as a signal for local adaptation. PMID:26064641

Elevated temperature altered photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizopshere soil under cadmium stress

PubMed Central

Jia, Xia; Zhao, YongHua; Wang, WenKe; He, Yunhua

2015-01-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring on photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and on organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under cadmium (Cd) stress. Elevated temperature was associated with increased soluble sugars, reducing sugars, starch, and total sugars, and with decreased amino acids in wheat seedlings under Cd stress. Elevated temperature improved total soluble sugars, free amino acids, soluble phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress. The activity of amylase, phenol oxidase, invertase, β-glucosidase, and l-asparaginase in rhizosphere soil was significantly improved by elevated temperature under Cd stress; while cellulase, neutral phosphatase, and urease activity significantly decreased. Elevated temperature significantly improved bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, and total microorganisms abundance and fluorescein diacetate activity under Cd stress. In conclusion, slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring improved the carbohydrate levels in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress in the short term. In addition, elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring stimulated available Cd by affecting pH, DOC, phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil, which resulted in the improvement of the Cd uptake by wheat seedlings. PMID:26395070

Creating a Coastal National Elevation Database (CoNED) for science and conservation applications

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thatcher, Cindy A.; Brock, John C.; Danielson, Jeffrey J.; Poppenga, Sandra K.; Gesch, Dean B.; Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Monica; Barras, John; Evans, Gayla A.; Gibbs, Ann

2016-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey is creating the Coastal National Elevation Database, an expanding set of topobathymetric elevation models that extend seamlessly across coastal regions of high societal or ecological significance in the United States that are undergoing rapid change or are threatened by inundation hazards. Topobathymetric elevation models are raster datasets useful for inundation prediction and other earth science applications, such as the development of sediment-transport and storm surge models. These topobathymetric elevation models are being constructed by the broad regional assimilation of numerous topographic and bathymetric datasets, and are intended to fulfill the pressing needs of decision makers establishing policies for hazard mitigation and emergency preparedness, coastal managers tasked with coastal planning compatible with predictions of inundation due to sea-level rise, and scientists investigating processes of coastal geomorphic change. A key priority of this coastal elevation mapping effort is to foster collaborative lidar acquisitions that meet the standards of the USGS National Geospatial Program's 3D Elevation Program, a nationwide initiative to systematically collect high-quality elevation data. The focus regions are located in highly dynamic environments, for example in areas subject to shoreline change, rapid wetland loss, hurricane impacts such as overwash and wave scouring, and/or human-induced changes to coastal topography.

Spatial patterns of wet season precipitation vertical gradients on the Tibetan Plateau and the surroundings.

PubMed

Cuo, Lan; Zhang, Yongxin

2017-07-11

The Tibetan Plateau and the surrounding (TPS) with its vast land mass and high elevation affects regional climate and weather. The TPS is also the headwater of 9 major Asian rivers that provide fresh water for 1.65 billion people and many ecosystems, with wet season (May-September) precipitation being the critical component of the fresh water. Using station observations, ERA-Interim and MERRA2 reanalysis, we find that wet season precipitation displays vertical gradients (i.e., changes with elevation) that vary within the region on the TPS. The decrease of precipitation with elevation occurs in the interior TPS with elevation larger than 4000 m, little or no change over the southeastern TPS, and increase elsewhere. The increase of precipitation with elevation is caused by increasing convective available potential energy (CAPE) and decreasing lifting condensation level (LCL) with elevation overwhelming the effects of decreasing total column water vapor (TCWV) with elevation. The decreasing precipitation with elevation is due to the combined effects of increasing LCL and decreasing TCWV. LCL and CAPE play a more important role than TCWV in determining the spatial patterns. These findings are important for hydrology study in observation scarce mountainous areas, water resources and ecosystem managements in the region.

Effect of Elevated CO2, O3, and UV Radiation on Soils

PubMed Central

Rejšek, Klement; Vranová, Valerie

2014-01-01

In this work, we have attempted to review the current knowledge on the impact of elevated CO2, O3, and UV on soils. Elevated CO2 increases labile and stabile soil C pool as well as efficiency of organic pollutants rhizoremediation and phytoextraction of heavy metals. Conversely, both elevated O3 and UV radiation decrease inputs of assimilates to the rhizosphere being accompanied by inhibitory effects on decomposition processes, rhizoremediation, and heavy metals phytoextraction efficiency. Contrary to elevated CO2, O3, or UV-B decreases soil microbial biomass, metabolisable C, and soil Nt content leading to higher C/N of soil organic matter. Elevated UV-B radiation shifts soil microbial community and decreases populations of soil meso- and macrofauna via direct effect rather than by induced changes of litter quality and root exudation as in case of elevated CO2 or O3. CO2 enrichment or increased UV-B is hypothesised to stimulate or inhibit both plant and microbial competitiveness for soluble soil N, respectively, whereas O3 favours only microbial competitive efficiency. Understanding the consequences of elevated CO2, O3, and UV radiation for soils, especially those related to fertility, phytotoxins inputs, elements cycling, plant-microbe interactions, and decontamination of polluted sites, presents a knowledge gap for future research. PMID:24688424

High-resolution pattern of mangrove species distribution is controlled by surface elevation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leong, Rick C.; Friess, Daniel A.; Crase, Beth; Lee, Wei Kit; Webb, Edward L.

2018-03-01

Mangrove vegetation species respond to multiple environmental gradients, and an enhanced understanding of how mangrove species are distributed across these gradients will facilitate conservation and management. Many environmental gradients correlate with tidal inundation; however small-scale inundation patterns resulting from microtopographical changes are difficult to capture empirically. In contrast, surface elevation is often a suitable, measurable and cost-effective proxy for inundation. This study investigated the relationships between species distribution and surface elevation in a mangrove forest in northwest Singapore. Through high-resolution land surveying, we developed a digital elevation model (DEM) and conducted a comprehensive survey of 4380 trees with a stem diameter ≥ 5 cm. A total of 15 species were encountered, and elevation envelopes were generated for 12. Species envelopes were distributed along an elevation continuum, with most species overlapping within the continuum. Spatial autocorrelation (SAC) was present for nine of the 15 species, and when taken into account, species ordering was modified across the elevation continuum. The presence of SAC strongly reinforces the need for research to control for SAC: classical spatial description of mangrove species distribution should be revised to account for ecological factors. This study suggests that (1) surface elevation applies strong controls on species distribution and (2) most mangroves at our study site have similar physiological tolerances.

Stochastic analysis of particle movement over a dune bed

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lee, Baum K.; Jobson, Harvey E.

1977-01-01

Stochastic models are available that can be used to predict the transport and dispersion of bed-material sediment particles in an alluvial channel. These models are based on the proposition that the movement of a single bed-material sediment particle consists of a series of steps of random length separated by rest periods of random duration and, therefore, application of the models requires a knowledge of the probability distributions of the step lengths, the rest periods, the elevation of particle deposition, and the elevation of particle erosion. The procedure was tested by determining distributions from bed profiles formed in a large laboratory flume with a coarse sand as the bed material. The elevation of particle deposition and the elevation of particle erosion can be considered to be identically distributed, and their distribution can be described by either a ' truncated Gaussian ' or a ' triangular ' density function. The conditional probability distribution of the rest period given the elevation of particle deposition closely followed the two-parameter gamma distribution. The conditional probability distribution of the step length given the elevation of particle erosion and the elevation of particle deposition also closely followed the two-parameter gamma density function. For a given flow, the scale and shape parameters describing the gamma probability distributions can be expressed as functions of bed-elevation. (Woodard-USGS)

Elevated temperature altered photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizopshere soil under cadmium stress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jia, Xia; Zhao, Yonghua; Wang, Wenke; He, Yunhua

2015-09-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring on photosynthetic products in wheat seedlings and on organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under cadmium (Cd) stress. Elevated temperature was associated with increased soluble sugars, reducing sugars, starch, and total sugars, and with decreased amino acids in wheat seedlings under Cd stress. Elevated temperature improved total soluble sugars, free amino acids, soluble phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress. The activity of amylase, phenol oxidase, invertase, β-glucosidase, and L-asparaginase in rhizosphere soil was significantly improved by elevated temperature under Cd stress; while cellulase, neutral phosphatase, and urease activity significantly decreased. Elevated temperature significantly improved bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, and total microorganisms abundance and fluorescein diacetate activity under Cd stress. In conclusion, slightly elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring improved the carbohydrate levels in wheat seedlings and organic compounds and biological activity in rhizosphere soil under Cd stress in the short term. In addition, elevated atmospheric temperature in the spring stimulated available Cd by affecting pH, DOC, phenolic acids, and organic acids in rhizosphere soil, which resulted in the improvement of the Cd uptake by wheat seedlings.

Shake Table Testing of an Elevator System in a Full-Scale Five-Story Building.

PubMed

Wang, Xiang; Hutchinson, Tara C; Astroza, Rodrigo; Conte, Joel P; Restrepo, José I; Hoehler, Matthew S; Ribeiro, Waldir

2017-03-01

This paper investigates the seismic performance of a functional traction elevator as part of a full-scale five-story building shake table test program. The test building was subjected to a suite of earthquake input motions of increasing intensity, first while the building was isolated at its base, and subsequently while it was fixed to the shake table platen. In addition, low-amplitude white noise base excitation tests were conducted while the elevator system was placed in three different configurations, namely, by varying the vertical location of its cabin and counterweight, to study the acceleration amplifications of the elevator components due to dynamic excitations. During the earthquake tests, detailed observation of the physical damage and operability of the elevator as well as its measured response are reported. Although the cabin and counterweight sustained large accelerations due to impact during these tests, the use of well-restrained guide shoes demonstrated its effectiveness in preventing the cabin and counterweight from derailment during high-intensity earthquake shaking. However, differential displacements induced by the building imposed undesirable distortion of the elevator components and their surrounding support structure, which caused damage and inoperability of the elevator doors. It is recommended that these aspects be explicitly considered in elevator seismic design.

Elevational sensitivity in an Asian 'hotspot': moth diversity across elevational gradients in tropical, sub-tropical and sub-alpine China.

PubMed

Ashton, L A; Nakamura, A; Burwell, C J; Tang, Y; Cao, M; Whitaker, T; Sun, Z; Huang, H; Kitching, R L

2016-05-23

South-western China is widely acknowledged as a biodiversity 'hotspot': there are high levels of diversity and endemism, and many environments are under significant anthropogenic threats not least climate warming. Here, we explore diversity and compare response patterns of moth assemblages among three elevational gradients established within different climatic bioregions - tropical rain forest, sub-tropical evergreen broad-leaved forest and sub-alpine coniferous forest in Yunnan Province, China. We hypothesised that tropical assemblages would be more elevationally stratified than temperate assemblages, and tropical species would be more elevationally restricted than those in the temperate zone. Contrary to our hypothesis, the moth fauna was more sensitive to elevational differences within the temperate transect, followed by sub-tropical and tropical transects. Moths in the cooler and more seasonal temperate sub-alpine gradient showed stronger elevation-decay beta diversity patterns, and more species were restricted to particular elevational ranges. Our study suggests that moth assemblages are under threat from future climate change and sub-alpine rather than tropical faunas may be the most sensitive to climate change. These results improve our understanding of China's biodiversity and can be used to monitor future changes to herbivore assemblages in a 'hotspot' of biodiversity.

Elevational sensitivity in an Asian ‘hotspot’: moth diversity across elevational gradients in tropical, sub-tropical and sub-alpine China

PubMed Central

Ashton, L. A.; Nakamura, A.; Burwell, C. J.; Tang, Y.; Cao, M.; Whitaker, T.; Sun, Z.; Huang, H.; Kitching, R. L.

2016-01-01

South-western China is widely acknowledged as a biodiversity ‘hotspot’: there are high levels of diversity and endemism, and many environments are under significant anthropogenic threats not least climate warming. Here, we explore diversity and compare response patterns of moth assemblages among three elevational gradients established within different climatic bioregions - tropical rain forest, sub-tropical evergreen broad-leaved forest and sub-alpine coniferous forest in Yunnan Province, China. We hypothesised that tropical assemblages would be more elevationally stratified than temperate assemblages, and tropical species would be more elevationally restricted than those in the temperate zone. Contrary to our hypothesis, the moth fauna was more sensitive to elevational differences within the temperate transect, followed by sub-tropical and tropical transects. Moths in the cooler and more seasonal temperate sub-alpine gradient showed stronger elevation-decay beta diversity patterns, and more species were restricted to particular elevational ranges. Our study suggests that moth assemblages are under threat from future climate change and sub-alpine rather than tropical faunas may be the most sensitive to climate change. These results improve our understanding of China’s biodiversity and can be used to monitor future changes to herbivore assemblages in a ‘hotspot’ of biodiversity. PMID:27211989

Elevational sensitivity in an Asian ‘hotspot’: moth diversity across elevational gradients in tropical, sub-tropical and sub-alpine China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ashton, L. A.; Nakamura, A.; Burwell, C. J.; Tang, Y.; Cao, M.; Whitaker, T.; Sun, Z.; Huang, H.; Kitching, R. L.

2016-05-01

South-western China is widely acknowledged as a biodiversity ‘hotspot’: there are high levels of diversity and endemism, and many environments are under significant anthropogenic threats not least climate warming. Here, we explore diversity and compare response patterns of moth assemblages among three elevational gradients established within different climatic bioregions - tropical rain forest, sub-tropical evergreen broad-leaved forest and sub-alpine coniferous forest in Yunnan Province, China. We hypothesised that tropical assemblages would be more elevationally stratified than temperate assemblages, and tropical species would be more elevationally restricted than those in the temperate zone. Contrary to our hypothesis, the moth fauna was more sensitive to elevational differences within the temperate transect, followed by sub-tropical and tropical transects. Moths in the cooler and more seasonal temperate sub-alpine gradient showed stronger elevation-decay beta diversity patterns, and more species were restricted to particular elevational ranges. Our study suggests that moth assemblages are under threat from future climate change and sub-alpine rather than tropical faunas may be the most sensitive to climate change. These results improve our understanding of China’s biodiversity and can be used to monitor future changes to herbivore assemblages in a ‘hotspot’ of biodiversity.

SPRUCE Hollow Elevation Data for Experimental Plots Beginning in 2015

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Griffiths, N. A.; Sebestyen, S. D.

2017-01-01

This data set provides hollow elevation data for the 17 SPRUCE experimental plots in the S1 bog on the Marcell Experimental Forest. Hollows were selected for measurement by walking along each octagonal boardwalk segment in a plot and identifying where a hollow intersected the boardwalk. The vertical distance between the surface of the boardwalk (with a known elevation) and the surface of the hollow was measured and the absolute elevation (in meters amsl) of the hollow surface was calculated. The hollow elevation measurements were carried out in October 2015, May 2016, and October 2016. These measurements will be repeated annuallymore » or more frequently.« less

10. Elevation of iconostas at Chapel of St. Sergius of ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

10. Elevation of iconostas at Chapel of St. Sergius of Radonezh; Elevation of iconostas at Chapel of St. Innocent of Irkutsk - Holy Ascension Russian Orthodox Church, Unalaska Island, Unalaska, Aleutian Islands, AK

One Bedroom Units: Floor Plan, South Elevation (As Built), North ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

One Bedroom Units: Floor Plan, South Elevation (As Built), North Elevation (As Built), Section A-A (As Built), Section AA (Existing) - Aluminum City Terrace, East Hill Drive, New Kensington, Westmoreland County, PA

Details: Elevation of Plate Typical Bay, SectionThrough Plate Typical Bay, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Details: Elevation of Plate Typical Bay, Section-Through Plate Typical Bay, Section-Through Plate Center Bay, Elevation of Plate Center Bay - Contoocook Covered Bridge, Spanning Contoocook River, Hopkinton, Merrimack County, NH

Brassinosteroid signaling-dependent root responses to prolonged elevated ambient temperature.

PubMed

Martins, Sara; Montiel-Jorda, Alvaro; Cayrel, Anne; Huguet, Stéphanie; Roux, Christine Paysant-Le; Ljung, Karin; Vert, Grégory

2017-08-21

Due to their sessile nature, plants have to cope with and adjust to their fluctuating environment. Temperature elevation stimulates the growth of Arabidopsis aerial parts. This process is mediated by increased biosynthesis of the growth-promoting hormone auxin. How plant roots respond to elevated ambient temperature is however still elusive. Here we present strong evidence that temperature elevation impinges on brassinosteroid hormone signaling to alter root growth. We show that elevated temperature leads to increased root elongation, independently of auxin or factors known to drive temperature-mediated shoot growth. We further demonstrate that brassinosteroid signaling regulates root responses to elevated ambient temperature. Increased growth temperature specifically impacts on the level of the brassinosteroid receptor BRI1 to downregulate brassinosteroid signaling and mediate root elongation. Our results establish that BRI1 integrates temperature and brassinosteroid signaling to regulate root growth upon long-term changes in environmental conditions associated with global warming.Moderate heat stimulates the growth of Arabidopsis shoots in an auxin-dependent manner. Here, Martins et al. show that elevated ambient temperature modifies root growth by reducing the BRI1 brassinosteroid-receptor protein level and downregulating brassinosteroid signaling.

Energy considerations in the partial space elevator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woo, Pamela; Misra, Arun K.

2014-06-01

The space elevator has been proposed as an alternate method for space transportation. A partial elevator is composed of a tether of several hundreds of kilometres, held vertically in tension between two end masses, with its centre of orbit placed at the geosynchronous orbit. A spacecraft can dock at the lower end, and then use the climber on the elevator to ascend to higher altitudes. In this paper, energy calculations are performed, to determine whether a partial elevator can provide sufficient savings in operational costs, compared to the traditional rocket-powered launch. The energy required to launch a spacecraft from a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to the geostationary orbit (GEO) is calculated for two trajectories. In the first trajectory, the spacecraft travels from LEO to GEO via a Hohmann transfer. In the second trajectory, the spacecraft travels from LEO to the lower end of the partial space elevator with a Hohmann transfer, and then uses the elevator to climb to GEO. The total energy required is compared between the two trajectories. The effects of tether length, spacecraft-to-climber mass ratio, altitude of LEO, and tether material are investigated.

Dynamic modeling and experiments on the coupled vibrations of building and elevator ropes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Dong-Ho; Kim, Ki-Young; Kwak, Moon K.; Lee, Seungjun

2017-03-01

This study is concerned with the theoretical modelling and experimental verification of the coupled vibrations of building and elevator ropes. The elevator ropes consist of a main rope which supports the cage and the compensation rope which is connected to the compensation sheave. The elevator rope is a flexible wire with a low damping, so it is prone to vibrations. In the case of a high-rise building, the rope length also increases significantly, so that the fundamental frequency of the elevator rope approaches the fundamental frequency of the building thus increasing the possibility of resonance. In this study, the dynamic model for the analysis of coupled vibrations of building and elevator ropes was derived by using Hamilton's principle, where the cage motion was also considered. An experimental testbed was built to validate the proposed dynamic model. It was found that the experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions thus validating the proposed dynamic model. The proposed model was then used to predict the vibrations of real building and elevator ropes.

Response of the rhizosphere prokaryotic community of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) to elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration in open-top chambers.

PubMed

Szoboszlay, Márton; Näther, Astrid; Mitterbauer, Esther; Bender, Jürgen; Weigel, Hans-Joachim; Tebbe, Christoph C

2017-08-01

The effect of elevated atmospheric CO 2 concentration [CO 2 ] on the diversity and composition of the prokaryotic community inhabiting the rhizosphere of winter barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was investigated in a field experiment, using open-top chambers. Rhizosphere samples were collected at anthesis (flowering stage) from six chambers with ambient [CO 2 ] (approximately 400 ppm) and six chambers with elevated [CO 2 ] (700 ppm). The V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was PCR-amplified from the extracted DNA and sequenced on an Illumina MiSeq instrument. Above-ground plant biomass was not affected by elevated [CO 2 ] at anthesis, but plants exposed to elevated [CO 2 ] had significantly higher grain yield. The composition of the rhizosphere prokaryotic communities was very similar under ambient and elevated [CO 2 ]. The dominant taxa were Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Alpha-, Gamma-, and Betaproteobacteria. Elevated [CO 2 ] resulted in lower prokaryotic diversity in the rhizosphere, but did not cause a significant difference in community structure. © 2017 The Authors. MicrobiologyOpen published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A new species of Anacroneuria Klapálek 1909 (Plecoptera: Perlidae) and notes on the altitudinal distribution of the genus in Costa Rica.

PubMed

Gutiérrez-Fonseca, Pablo E; Springer, Monika

2015-12-18

Anacroneuria is the most widespread genus of Perlidae throughout the Neotropical region and 30 species have been reported from Costa Rica. In this paper, we describe and illustrate a new species from a high elevation cloud forest, A. quetzali sp.n., increasing to 31 the number of described species for Costa Rica. In addition, we examine the altitudinal distribution of Anacroneuria in Costa Rica to determine possible patterns, using the data available on its altitudinal range (10-2700 masl). We divided the elevational range in seven categories, using 500 m intervals. We found that most species (90.3%) are distributed in elevations that range from 500 to 1500 masl, followed by low-elevations (35.5%). Interestingly, despite the fact that Plecoptera are known to inhabit clean, fast flowing water at high elevations, only 16.1% of the species have been found at high elevations in Costa Rica (above 2000 masl). Thus, it seems that most Anacroneuria species are distributed in middle elevations, which are the areas that have a high diversity of freshwater habitats.

Species-specific responses to atmospheric carbon dioxide and tropospheric ozone mediate changes in soil carbon.

PubMed

Talhelm, Alan F; Pregitzer, Kurt S; Zak, Donald R

2009-11-01

We repeatedly sampled the surface mineral soil (0-20 cm depth) in three northern temperate forest communities over an 11-year experimental fumigation to understand the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO(2)) and/or elevated phyto-toxic ozone (O(3)) on soil carbon (C). After 11 years, there was no significant main effect of CO(2) or O(3) on soil C. However, within the community containing only aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.), elevated CO(2) caused a significant decrease in soil C content. Together with the observations of increased litter inputs, this result strongly suggests accelerated decomposition under elevated CO(2.) In addition, an initial reduction in the formation of new (fumigation-derived) soil C by O(3) under elevated CO(2) proved to be only a temporary effect, mirroring trends in fine root biomass. Our results contradict predictions of increased soil C under elevated CO(2) and decreased soil C under elevated O(3) and should be considered in models simulating the effects of Earth's altered atmosphere.

Elevated CO2 levels affects the concentrations of copper and cadmium in crops grown in soil contaminated with heavy metals under fully open-air field conditions.

PubMed

Guo, Hongyan; Zhu, Jianguo; Zhou, Hui; Sun, Yuanyuan; Yin, Ying; Pei, Daping; Ji, Rong; Wu, Jichun; Wang, Xiaorong

2011-08-15

Elevated CO(2) levels and the increase in heavy metals in soils through pollution are serious problems worldwide. Whether elevated CO(2) levels will affect plants grown in heavy-metal-polluted soil and thereby influence food quality and safety is not clear. Using a free-air CO(2) enrichment (FACE) system, we investigated the impacts of elevated atmospheric CO(2) on the concentrations of copper (Cu) or cadmium (Cd) in rice and wheat grown in soil with different concentrations of the metals in the soil. In the two-year study, elevated CO(2) levels led to lower Cu concentrations and higher Cd concentrations in shoots and grain of both rice and wheat grown in the respective contaminated soil. Elevated CO(2) levels slightly but significantly lowered the pH of the soil and led to changes in Cu and Cd fractionation in the soil. Our study indicates that elevated CO(2) alters the distribution of contaminant elements in soil and plants, thereby probably affecting food quality and safety.

Base (100-year) flood elevations for selected sites in Livingston County, Missouri

USGS Publications Warehouse

Southard, Rodney E.; Richards, Joseph M.

2002-01-01

The primary criteria for community participation in the National Flood Insurance Program is the adoption and enforcement of floodplain management requirements that minimize the potential for flood damages to existing and proposed development in flood-hazard areas. This report provides base flood elevations (BFE) for a 100-year recurrence-interval flood for use in the management and regulation of 18 flood-hazard areas designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as approximate Zone A areas in Livingston County, Missouri. The one-dimensional surface-water flow models HEC-RAS and Water-Surface PROfile (WSPRO) were used to compute base (100-year) flood elevations for 18 Zone A sites. The HEC-RAS model was used at BFE sites 1 to 6, 9, 10, and 15 to 18. The WSPRO model was used at BFE sites 7, 8, and 11 to 14. The 18 sites are all located in Livingston County, Missouri, at U.S., State, or County road crossings, and the base flood elevation was determined at the upstream side of each crossing. The base (100-year) flood elevations for BFE 1, 2, and 3 on Shoal Creek at Dawn and Shoal Creek Drainage Ditch near Dawn are 701.0, 701.0, and 696.5 feet, respectively. The base (100-year) flood elevations for BFE 4 and 5 on Indian Branch near Sampsel and a tributary to Indian Branch near Sampsel are 711.7 and 755.4 feet, respectively. Site BFE 6 is located on Honey Creek near Farmersville and the base (100-year) flood elevation for this site is 730.8 feet. One site (BFE 7) is located on No Creek near Farmersville. The base (100-year) flood elevation for this site is 731.3 feet. Site BFE 8 is located on Crooked Creek near Chillicothe and the base (100-year) elevation is 716.4 feet. One site (BFE 9) is located on a tributary to Coon Creek at Chillicothe. The base (100-year) flood elevation for this site is 734.9 feet. Two sites (BFE 10 and 11) are located on Blackwell Branch at Chillicothe. The base (100-year) flood elevation for BFE 10 is 738.9 feet and for BFE 11 is 701.7 feet. The base (100-year) flood elevation for BFE 12 on Medicine Creek near Chula is 721.7 feet. Sites BFE 13 and 15 are on Muddy Creek and for BFE 14 is on Little Muddy Creek near Chula. The base (100-year) flood elevations for BFE 13 and 15 are 733.0 and 717.9 feet, respectively and for BFE 14 is 734.6 feet. Downstream from BFE 12 is site BFE 16 on Medicine Creek near Wheeling. The base (100-year) flood elevation for site BFE 16 is 686.1 feet. One site (BFE 17) is located on Campbell Creek near Bedford. The base (100-year) flood elevation at this site is 691.8 feet. Site BFE 18 is located on Towstring Creek near Hale. The base (100-year) flood elevation for site BFE 18 is 667.4 feet.

47 CFR 24.53 - Calculation of height above average terrain (HAAT).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... height above mean sea level. (b) Average terrain elevation shall be calculated using elevation data from... Digital Chart of the World (DCW) may be used. (c) Radial average terrain elevation is calculated as the...

47 CFR 24.53 - Calculation of height above average terrain (HAAT).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... height above mean sea level. (b) Average terrain elevation shall be calculated using elevation data from... Digital Chart of the World (DCW) may be used. (c) Radial average terrain elevation is calculated as the...

47 CFR 24.53 - Calculation of height above average terrain (HAAT).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... height above mean sea level. (b) Average terrain elevation shall be calculated using elevation data from... Digital Chart of the World (DCW) may be used. (c) Radial average terrain elevation is calculated as the...

47 CFR 24.53 - Calculation of height above average terrain (HAAT).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... height above mean sea level. (b) Average terrain elevation shall be calculated using elevation data from... Digital Chart of the World (DCW) may be used. (c) Radial average terrain elevation is calculated as the...

47 CFR 24.53 - Calculation of height above average terrain (HAAT).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... height above mean sea level. (b) Average terrain elevation shall be calculated using elevation data from... Digital Chart of the World (DCW) may be used. (c) Radial average terrain elevation is calculated as the...

173. STORAGE ROOM, LOOKING WEST FROM ELEVATOR SHAFT INTO STORAGE ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

173. STORAGE ROOM, LOOKING WEST FROM ELEVATOR SHAFT INTO STORAGE AREA ADDED AS PART OF 1905 ELEVATOR ADDITION. - Gruber Wagon Works, Pennsylvania Route 183 & State Hill Road at Red Bridge Park, Bernville, Berks County, PA

29 CFR 780.719 - Employees not employed “by” the elevator establishment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT Employment by Small Country Elevators Within Area of Production; Exemption... in drying grain for the elevator is not exempt under this section. Employment “Within the Area of...

101. STARBOARD AIRPLANE ELEVATOR MACHINERY ROOM AFT LOOKING FORWARD ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

101. STARBOARD AIRPLANE ELEVATOR MACHINERY ROOM - AFT LOOKING FORWARD PORT TO STARBOARD SHOWING ELEVATOR ENGINE, LIFTING WIRES, HYDRAULIC PIPING WITH REMOTE OPERATOR. - U.S.S. HORNET, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Sinclair Inlet, Bremerton, Kitsap County, WA

Investigation on cause of the elevator turbine wear

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, J.; Ouyang, W. P.; Xue, J. A.

2018-03-01

Elevator traction turbine is often worn for various reasons, causing serious safety hazard. It is explained the main causes of traction wheel wear in detail in combination with a large number of engineering experience. The effect of turbine wear on the actual operation of the elevator is verified by contrast experiment, which is helpful to identify risks early. It is put forward on some reasonable suggestions for elevator inspection, maintenance and management.

Effects of long-term (10 years) exposure to elevated CO2 and O3 on trembling Aspen carbon and nitrogen metabolism at the aspen FACE (Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment) study site

Treesearch

Rakesh Minocha; Stephanie Long; Subhash Minocha; Paula Marquardt; Neil Nelson; Mark. Kubiske

2010-01-01

This study was conducted at the Aspen Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) experimental site, Rhinelander, WI, (USA). Since 1998, 12 experimental rings planted in 1997 underwent four different treatments: control; elevated CO2 (560 ppm); elevated O3 (1.5X ambient) and elevated CO2 (560 ppm) + O...

Comment on "Changes in climatic water balance drive downhill shifts in plant species' optimum elevations"

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stephenson, Nathan L.; Das, Adrian J.

2011-01-01

Crimmins et al. (Reports, 21 January 2011, p. 324) attributed an apparent downward elevational shift of California plant species to a precipitation-induced decline in climatic water deficit. We show that the authors miscalculated deficit, that the apparent decline in species' elevations is likely a consequence of geographic biases, and that unlike temperature changes, precipitation changes should not be expected to cause coordinated directional shifts in species' elevations.

East and west elevations. San Berardino Valley Union Junior College, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

East and west elevations. San Berardino Valley Union Junior College, Science Building. Also includes elevations and sections of chemistry department shelving. Howard E. Jones, Architect, San Bernardino, California. Sheet 4, Job no. 311. Scales 1/8 inch to the foot (elevations) and 1/2 inch t other foot (shelving). February 15, 1927. - San Bernardino Valley College, Life Science Building, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

Provision of Training for the IT Industry: The ELEVATE Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paraskakis, Iraklis; Konstantinidis, Andreas; Bouras, Thanassis; Perakis, Kostas; Pantelopoulos, Stelios; Hatziapostolou, Thanos

This paper will present ELEVATE that aims to deliver an innovative training, educational and certification environment integrating the application software to be taught with the training procedure. ELEVATE aspires to address the training needs of software development SMEs and the solution proposed is based on three basic notions: to provide competence training that is tailored to the needs of the individual trainee, to allow the trainee to carry out authentic activities as well as problem based learning that draws from real life scenarios and finally to allow for the assessment and certification of the skills and competences acquired. In order to achieve the desired results the ELEVATE architecture utilises an Interactive Interoperability Layer, an Intelligent Personalization Trainer as well as the Training, Evaluation & Certification component. As an end product, the ELEVATE project The ELEVATE pedagogical model is based on blended learning, the e-Training component (an intelligent system that provides tailored training) and Learning 2.0.

The benefits of improved national elevation data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Snyder, Gregory I.

2013-01-01

This article describes how the National Enhanced Elevation Assessment (NEEA) has identified substantial benefits that could come about if improved elevation data were publicly available for current and emerging applications and business uses such as renewable energy, precision agriculture, and intelligent vehicle navigation and safety. In order to support these diverse needs, new national elevation data with higher resolution and accuracy are needed. The 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) initiative was developed to meet the majority of these needs and it is expected that 3DEP will result in new, unimagined information services that would result in job growth and the transformation of the geospatial community. Private-sector data collection companies are continuously evolving sensors and positioning technologies that are needed to collect improved elevation data. An initiative of this scope might also provide an opportunity for companies to improve their capabilities and produce even higher data quality and consistency at a pace that might not have otherwise occurred.

Satellite radar altimetry over ice. Volume 4: Users' guide for Antarctica elevation data from Seasat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Major, Judith A.; Brenner, Anita C.; Bindschadler, Robert A.; Martin, Thomas V.

1990-01-01

A gridded surface-elevation data set and a geo-referenced data base for the Seasat radar altimeter data over Greenland are described. This is a user guide to accompany the data provided to data centers and other users. The grid points are on a polar stereographic projection with a nominal spacing of 20 km. The gridded elevations are derived from the elevation data in the geo-referenced data base by a weighted fitting of a surface in the neighborhood of each grid point. The gridded elevations are useful for the creating of large-scale contour maps, and the geo-referenced data base is useful for regridding, creating smaller-scale contour maps, and examinating individual elevation measurements in specific geographic areas. Tape formats are described, and a FORTRAN program for reading the data tape is listed and provided on the tape.

Poor safety climate, long work hours, and musculoskeletal discomfort among Latino horse farm workers.

PubMed

Swanberg, Jennifer; Clouser, Jessica Miller; Gan, Wenqi; Flunker, John C; Westneat, Susan; Browning, Steven R

2017-09-03

This study investigated the prevalence of self-reported musculoskeletal discomfort (MSD) and work-related factors associated with elevated MSD among Latino thoroughbred farm workers. Participants (N = 225) were recruited using a community-based purposive sampling approach to participate in in-person interviews. Of these workers, 85% experienced MSD. MSD was divided into tertiles; the upper tertile was defined as elevated. Multivariable Poisson regression revealed associations between any elevated MSD and longer tenure on horse farms, longer work hours, and poor safety climate. Elevated neck/back MSD was associated with longer tenure, longer work hours, and poor safety climate. Elevated upper extremity MSD was associated with age and poor safety climate. Elevated lower extremity MSD was associated with longer tenure, longer work hours, and being female. Musculoskeletal discomfort is common among these workers. Improving safety climate and minimizing long work hours is recommended.

Hypsographic demography: The distribution of human population by altitude

PubMed Central

Cohen, Joel E.; Small, Christopher

1998-01-01

The global distribution of the human population by elevation is quantified here. As of 1994, an estimated 1.88 × 109 people, or 33.5% of the world’s population, lived within 100 vertical meters of sea level, but only 15.6% of all inhabited land lies below 100 m elevation. The median person lived at an elevation of 194 m above sea level. Numbers of people decreased faster than exponentially with increasing elevation. The integrated population density (IPD, the number of people divided by the land area) within 100 vertical meters of sea level was significantly larger than that of any other range of elevations and represented far more people. A significant percentage of the low-elevation population lived at moderate population densities rather than at the highest densities of central large cities. Assessments of coastal hazards that focus only on large cities may substantially underestimate the number of people who could be affected. PMID:9826643

Overcoming beneficiary race as an impediment to charitable donations: social dominance orientation, the experience of moral elevation, and donation behavior.

PubMed

Freeman, Dan; Aquino, Karl; McFerran, Brent

2009-01-01

Three studies examined the relationship between social dominance orientation (SDO), the experience of moral elevation, and Whites' donations to charitable organizations. Study 1 used video clips depicting acts of moral excellence to elicit a state of moral elevation (a distinctive feeling of warmth and expansion, which is accompanied by admiration, affection, and even love for people whose exemplary moral behavior is being observed). Results show that moral elevation increased participants' willingness to donate to a Black-oriented charity and attenuated the negative effect of the group-based dominance (GBD) component of SDO on donation behavior. Studies 2 and 3 replicate and extend these findings by using a written story to elicit a state of moral elevation and examining actual donations to a Black-oriented charity. Results show that moral elevation increased donations to the Black-oriented charity and neutralized the negative influence of GBD.

Can variation in risk of nest predation explain altitudinal migration in tropical birds?

PubMed

Boyle, W Alice

2008-03-01

Migration is among the best studied of animal behaviors, yet few empirical studies have tested hypotheses explaining the ultimate causes of these cyclical annual movements. Fretwell's (1980) hypothesis predicts that if nest predation explains why many tropical birds migrate uphill to breed, then predation risk must be negatively associated with elevation. Data from 385 artificial nests spanning 2,740 m of elevation on the Atlantic slope of Costa Rica show an overall decline in predation with increasing elevation. However, nest predation risk was highest at intermediate elevations (500-650 m), not at lowest elevations. The proportion of nests depredated by different types of predators differed among elevations. These results imply that over half of the altitudinal migrant bird species in this region migrate to safer breeding areas than their non-breeding areas, suggesting that variation in nest predation risk could be an important benefit of uphill migrations of many species.

Elevated carbon dioxide increases salicylic acid in Glycine max.

PubMed

Casteel, Clare L; Segal, Lauren M; Niziolek, Olivia K; Berenbaum, May R; DeLucia, Evan H

2012-12-01

Concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) are increasing in the atmosphere, affecting soybean (Glycine max L.) phytohormone signaling and herbivore resistance. Whether the impact of elevated CO(2) on phytohormones and induced defenses is a generalized response within this species is an open question. We examined jasmonic acid (JA) and salicylic acid (SA) under ambient and elevated CO(2) concentrations with and without Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica Newman) damage and artificial damage across six soybean cultivars (HS93-4118, Pana, IA 3010, Loda, LN97-15076, and Dwight). Elevated CO(2) reduced constitutive levels of JA and related transcripts in some but not all soybean cultivars. In contrast to the variation in JA, constitutive levels of salicylic were increased universally among soybean cultivars grown under elevated CO(2). Variation in hormonal signaling may underpin observed variation in the response of insect herbivores and pathogens to plants grown under elevated CO(2).

Toxicity of chromium (VI) to two mussels and an amphipod in water-only exposures with or without a co-stressor of elevated temperature, zinc, or nitrate

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wang, Ning; Kunz, James L.; Ivey, Chris D.; Ingersoll, Christopher G.; Barnhart, M. Christopher; Glidewell, Elizabeth A.

2017-01-01

The objectives of the present study were to develop methods for propagating western pearlshell (Margaritifera falcata) for laboratory toxicity testing and evaluate acute and chronic toxicity of chromium VI [Cr(VI)] to the pearlshell and a commonly tested mussel (fatmucket, Lampsilis siliquoidea at 20 °C or in association with a co-stressor of elevated temperature (27 °C), zinc (50 µg Zn/L), or nitrate (35 mg NO3/L). A commonly tested invertebrate (amphipod, Hyalella azteca) also was tested in chronic exposures. Newly transformed pearlshell (~1 week old) were successfully cultured and tested in acute 96 h Cr exposures (control survival 100%). However, the grow-out of juveniles in culture for chronic toxicity testing was less successful and chronic 28-day Cr toxicity tests started with 4 month-old pearlshell failed due to low control survival (39–68%). Acute median effect concentration (EC50) for the pearlshell (919 µg Cr/L) and fatmucket (456 µg Cr/L) tested at 20 °C without a co-stressor decreased by a factor of > 2 at elevated temperature but did not decrease at elevated Zn or elevated NO3. Chronic 28-day Cr tests were completed successfully with the fatmucket and amphipod (control survival 83–98%). Chronic maximum acceptable toxicant concentration (MATC) for fatmucket at 20 °C (26 µg Cr/L) decreased by a factor of 2 at elevated temperature or NO3 but did not decrease at elevated Zn. However, chronic MATC for amphipod at 20 °C (13 µg Cr/L) did not decrease at elevated temperature, Zn, or NO3. Acute EC50s for both mussels tested with or without a co-stressor were above the final acute value used to derive United States Environmental Protection Agency acute water quality criterion (WQC) for Cr(VI); however, chronic MATCs for fatmucket at elevated temperature or NO3 and chronic MATCs for the amphipod at 20 °C with or without elevated Zn or NO3 were about equal to the chronic WQC. The results indicate that (1) the elevated temperature increased the acute Cr toxicity to both mussel species, (2) fatmucket was acutely more sensitive to Cr than the pearlshell, (3) elevated temperature or NO3 increased chronic Cr toxicity to fatmucket, and (4) acute WQC are protective of tested mussels with or without a co-stressor; however, the chronic WQC might not protect fatmucket at elevated temperature or NO3 and might not protect the amphipod at 20 °C with or without elevated Zn or NO3.

Biophysical controls on accretion and elevation change in Caribbean mangrove ecosystems

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKee, K.L.

2011-01-01

Habitat stability of coastal ecosystems, such as marshes and mangroves, depends on maintenance of soil elevations relative to sea level. Many such systems are characterized by limited mineral sedimentation and/or rapid subsidence and are consequently dependent upon accumulation of organic matter to maintain elevations. However, little field information exists regarding the contribution of specific biological processes to vertical accretion and elevation change. This study used biogenic mangrove systems in carbonate settings in Belize (BZ) and southwest Florida (FL) to examine biophysical controls on elevation change. Rates of elevation change, vertical accretion, benthic mat formation, and belowground root accumulation were measured in fringe, basin, scrub, and dwarf forest types plus a restored forest. Elevation change rates (mm yr-1) measured with Surface Elevation Tables varied widely: BZ-Dwarf (-3.7), BZ-Scrub (-1.1), FL-Fringe (0.6), FL-Basin (2.1), BZ-Fringe (4.1), and FL-Restored (9.9). Root mass accumulation varied across sites (82-739 g m-2 yr-1) and was positively correlated with elevation change. Root volumetric contribution to vertical change (mm yr-1) was lowest in BZ-Dwarf (1.2) and FL-Fringe (2.4), intermediate in FL-Basin (4.1) and BZ-Scrub (4.3), and highest in BZ-Fringe (8.8) and FL-Restored (11.8) sites. Surface growth of turf-forming algae, microbial mats, or accumulation of leaf litter and detritus also made significant contributions to vertical accretion. Turf algal mats in fringe and scrub forests accreted faster (2.7 mm yr-1) than leaf litter mats in basin forests (1.9 mm yr-1), but similarly to microbial mats in dwarf forests (2.1 mm yr-1). Surface accretion of mineral material accounted for only 0.2-3.3% of total vertical change. Those sites with high root contributions and/or rapid growth of living mats exhibited an elevation surplus (+2 to +8 mm yr-1), whereas those with low root inputs and low (or non-living) mat accumulation showed an elevation deficit (-1 to -5.7 mm yr-1). This study indicates that biotic processes of root production and benthic mat formation are important controls on accretion and elevation change in mangrove ecosystems common to the Caribbean Region. Quantification of specific biological controls on elevation provides better insight into how sustainability of such systems might be influenced by global (e.g., climate, atmospheric CO2) and local (e.g., nutrients, disturbance) factors affecting organic matter accumulation, in addition to relative sea-level rise. ?? 2010.

Biophysical controls on accretion and elevation change in Caribbean mangrove ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McKee, Karen L.

2011-03-01

Habitat stability of coastal ecosystems, such as marshes and mangroves, depends on maintenance of soil elevations relative to sea level. Many such systems are characterized by limited mineral sedimentation and/or rapid subsidence and are consequently dependent upon accumulation of organic matter to maintain elevations. However, little field information exists regarding the contribution of specific biological processes to vertical accretion and elevation change. This study used biogenic mangrove systems in carbonate settings in Belize (BZ) and southwest Florida (FL) to examine biophysical controls on elevation change. Rates of elevation change, vertical accretion, benthic mat formation, and belowground root accumulation were measured in fringe, basin, scrub, and dwarf forest types plus a restored forest. Elevation change rates (mm yr -1) measured with Surface Elevation Tables varied widely: BZ-Dwarf (-3.7), BZ-Scrub (-1.1), FL-Fringe (0.6), FL-Basin (2.1), BZ-Fringe (4.1), and FL-Restored (9.9). Root mass accumulation varied across sites (82-739 g m -2 yr -1) and was positively correlated with elevation change. Root volumetric contribution to vertical change (mm yr -1) was lowest in BZ-Dwarf (1.2) and FL-Fringe (2.4), intermediate in FL-Basin (4.1) and BZ-Scrub (4.3), and highest in BZ-Fringe (8.8) and FL-Restored (11.8) sites. Surface growth of turf-forming algae, microbial mats, or accumulation of leaf litter and detritus also made significant contributions to vertical accretion. Turf algal mats in fringe and scrub forests accreted faster (2.7 mm yr -1) than leaf litter mats in basin forests (1.9 mm yr -1), but similarly to microbial mats in dwarf forests (2.1 mm yr -1). Surface accretion of mineral material accounted for only 0.2-3.3% of total vertical change. Those sites with high root contributions and/or rapid growth of living mats exhibited an elevation surplus (+2 to +8 mm yr -1), whereas those with low root inputs and low (or non-living) mat accumulation showed an elevation deficit (-1 to -5.7 mm yr -1). This study indicates that biotic processes of root production and benthic mat formation are important controls on accretion and elevation change in mangrove ecosystems common to the Caribbean Region. Quantification of specific biological controls on elevation provides better insight into how sustainability of such systems might be influenced by global (e.g., climate, atmospheric CO 2) and local (e.g., nutrients, disturbance) factors affecting organic matter accumulation, in addition to relative sea-level rise.

Interactive effects of elevated ozone and UV-B radiation on soil nematode diversity.

PubMed

Bao, Xuelian; Li, Qi; Hua, Jianfeng; Zhao, Tianhong; Liang, Wenju

2014-01-01

Ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation and elevated tropospheric ozone may cause reductions in the productivity and quality of important agricultural crops. However, research regarding their interactive effect is still scarce, especially on the belowground processes. Using the open top chambers experimental setup, we monitored the response of soil nematodes to the elevated O3 and UV-B radiation individually as well as in combination. Our results indicated that elevated O3 and UV-B radiation have impact not only on the belowground biomass of plants, but also on the community structure and functional diversity of soil nematodes. The canonical correspondence analysis suggested that soil pH, shoot biomass and microbial biomass C and N were relevant parameters that influencing soil nematode distribution. The interactive effects of elevated O3 and UV-B radiation was only observed on the abundance of bacterivores. UV-B radiation significantly increased the abundance of total nematodes and bacterivores in comparison with the control at pod-filling stage of soybean. Following elevated O3, nematode diversity index decreased and dominance index increased relative to the control at pod-filling stage of soybean. Nematode functional diversity showed response to the effects of elevated O3 and UV-B radiation at pod-bearing stage. Higher enrichment index and lower structure index in the treatment with both elevated O3 and UV-B radiation indicated a stressed soil condition and degraded soil food web. However, the ratios of nematode trophic groups suggested that the negative effects of elevated O3 on soil food web may be weakened by the UV-B radiations.

Gas exchange, growth, and defense responses of invasive Alliaria petiolata (Brassicaceae) and native Geum vernum (Rosaceae) to elevated atmospheric CO2 and warm spring temperatures.

PubMed

Anderson, Laurel J; Cipollini, Don

2013-08-01

Global increases in atmospheric CO2 and temperature may interact in complex ways to influence plant physiology and growth, particularly for species that grow in cool, early spring conditions in temperate forests. Plant species may also vary in their responses to environmental changes; fast-growing invasives may be more responsive to rising CO2 than natives and may increase production of allelopathic compounds under these conditions, altering species' competitive interactions. We examined growth and physiological responses of Alliaria petiolata, an allelopathic, invasive herb, and Geum vernum, a co-occurring native herb, to ambient and elevated spring temperatures and atmospheric CO2 conditions in a factorial growth chamber experiment. At 5 wk, leaves were larger at high temperature, and shoot biomass increased under elevated CO2 only at high temperature in both species. As temperatures gradually warmed to simulate seasonal progression, G. vernum became responsive to CO2 at both temperatures, whereas A. petiolata continued to respond to elevated CO2 only at high temperature. Elevated CO2 increased thickness and decreased nitrogen concentrations in leaves of both species. Alliaria petiolata showed photosynthetic downregulation at elevated CO2, whereas G. vernum photosynthesis increased at elevated temperature. Flavonoid and cyanide concentrations decreased significantly in A. petiolata leaves in the elevated CO2 and temperature treatment. Total glucosinolate concentrations and trypsin inhibitor activities did not vary among treatments. Future elevated spring temperatures and CO2 will interact to stimulate growth for A. petiolata and G. vernum, but there may be reduced allelochemical effects in A. petiolata.

Effects of Elevated CO2 on Levels of Primary Metabolites and Transcripts of Genes Encoding Respiratory Enzymes and Their Diurnal Patterns in Arabidopsis thaliana: Possible Relationships with Respiratory Rates

PubMed Central

Watanabe, Chihiro K.; Sato, Shigeru; Yanagisawa, Shuichi; Uesono, Yukifumi; Terashima, Ichiro; Noguchi, Ko

2014-01-01

Elevated CO2 affects plant growth and photosynthesis, which results in changes in plant respiration. However, the mechanisms underlying the responses of plant respiration to elevated CO2 are poorly understood. In this study, we measured diurnal changes in the transcript levels of genes encoding respiratory enzymes, the maximal activities of the enzymes and primary metabolite levels in shoots of Arabidopsis thaliana grown under moderate or elevated CO2 conditions (390 or 780 parts per million by volume CO2, respectively). We examined the relationships between these changes and respiratory rates. Under elevated CO2, the transcript levels of several genes encoding respiratory enzymes increased at the end of the light period, but these increases did not result in changes in the maximal activities of the corresponding enzymes. The levels of some primary metabolites such as starch and sugar phosphates increased under elevated CO2, particularly at the end of the light period. The O2 uptake rate at the end of the dark period was higher under elevated CO2 than under moderate CO2, but higher under moderate CO2 than under elevated CO2 at the end of the light period. These results indicate that the changes in O2 uptake rates are not directly related to changes in maximal enzyme activities and primary metabolite levels. Instead, elevated CO2 may affect anabolic processes that consume respiratory ATP, thereby affecting O2 uptake rates. PMID:24319073

National Enhanced Elevation Assessment at a glance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Snyder, Gregory I.

2012-01-01

Elevation data are essential for hazards mitigation, conservation, infrastructure development, national security, and many other applications. Under the leadership of the U.S. Geological Survey and the member States of the National Digital Elevation Program (NDEP), Federal agencies, State agencies, and others work together to acquire high-quality elevation data for the United States and its territories. New elevation data are acquired using modern technology to replace elevation data that are, on average, more than 30 years old. Through the efforts of the NDEP, a project-by-project data acquisition approach resulted in improved, publicly available data for 28 percent of the conterminous United States and 15 percent of Alaska over the past 15 years. Although the program operates efficiently, the rate of data collection and the typical project specifications are currently insufficient to address the needs of government, the private sector, and other organizations. The National Enhanced Elevation Assessment was conducted to (1) document national-level requirements for improved elevation data, (2) estimate the benefits and costs of meeting those requirements, and (3) evaluate multiple national-level program-implementation scenarios. The assessment was sponsored by the NDEP's member agencies. The study participants came from 34 Federal agencies, agencies from all 50 States, selected local government and Tribal offices, and private and not-for-profit organizations. A total of 602 mission-critical activities were identified that need significantly more accurate data than are currently available. The results of the assessment indicate that a national-level enhanced-elevation-data program has the potential to generate from $1.2 billion to $13 billion in new benefits annually.

Plant-herbivore interactions along elevational gradient: Comparison of field and common garden data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rokaya, Maan Bahadur; Dostálek, Tomáš; Münzbergová, Zuzana

2016-11-01

In response to climate change, various organisms tend to migrate to higher elevations and latitudes. Unequal migration rates of plants and animals are expected to result in changes in the type and intensity of their interactions such as plant-herbivore interactions. In the present study, we studied the extent of herbivore damage in Salvia nubicola along an elevational gradient in Manang, central Nepal. A common garden experiment was also carried out by sowing seeds collected from different populations along the elevational gradient. As expected, the extent of herbivore damage in the field was significantly lower at higher elevations, and it increased with the population size and at sites without shrubs. In the common garden experiment, herbivore damage was higher in plants originating from lower elevations and from more open habitats. While higher herbivore pressure in the field at lower elevations may suggest that plants will be better protected against herbivores at lower elevations, the common garden study demonstrated the opposite. A possible explanation could be that plants from higher elevations have to adapt to extreme conditions, and lower palatability is a side effect of these adaptations. Thus, S. nubicola in the Himalayan region is likely to survive the expected higher herbivore pressure caused by an upward shift of herbivores under future climate change. Future studies should attempt to elucidate generality of such a conclusion by studying multiple species along similar gradients. Our results from comparison of the field and common garden study suggest that future experiments need to include comparisons in common environments to understand the expected response of plants to changes in herbivore pressure.

Auxin modulates the enhanced development of root hairs in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. under elevated CO(2).

PubMed

Niu, Yaofang; Jin, Chongwei; Jin, Gulei; Zhou, Qingyan; Lin, Xianyong; Tang, Caixian; Zhang, Yongsong

2011-08-01

Root hairs may play a critical role in nutrient acquisition of plants grown under elevated CO(2) . This study investigated how elevated CO(2) enhanced the development of root hairs in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. The plants under elevated CO(2) (800 µL L(-1)) had denser and longer root hairs, and more H-positioned cells in root epidermis than those under ambient CO(2) (350 µL L(-1)). The elevated CO(2) increased auxin production in roots. Under elevated CO(2) , application of either 1-naphthoxyacetic acid (1-NOA) or N-1-naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA) blocked the enhanced development of root hairs. The opposite was true when the plants under ambient CO(2) were treated with 1-naphthylacetic acid (NAA), an auxin analogue. Furthermore, the elevated CO(2) did not enhance the development of root hairs in auxin-response mutants, axr1-3, and auxin-transporter mutants, axr4-1, aux1-7 and pin1-1. Both elevated CO(2) and NAA application increased expressions of caprice, triptychon and rho-related protein from plants 2, and decreased expressions of werewolf, GLABRA2, GLABRA3 and the transparent testa glabra 1, genes related to root-hair development, while 1-NOA and NPA application had an opposite effect. Our study suggests that elevated CO(2) enhanced the development of root hairs in Arabidopsis via the well-characterized auxin signalling and transport that modulate the initiation of root hairs and the expression of its specific genes. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Outcomes of flapless crestal maxillary sinus elevation under hydraulic pressure.

PubMed

Bensaha, Tarik

2012-01-01

Sinus elevation through the crestal approach has become a routine procedure for implant placement in the posterior edentulous maxilla. The combination of flapless surgery and crestal sinus elevation with simultaneous placement of implants is an attractive surgical approach for implant grafting in the posterior maxilla, but its efficacy and safety have seldom been studied. The aim of this study is to evaluate retrospectively the outcomes of flapless crestal sinus floor elevation using piezosurgery and a hydraulic sinus elevation system with simultaneous implant placement. Between October 2009 and August 2010, flapless implant surgery using a crestal approach, accompanied by simultaneous hydraulic sinus elevation and grafting, was performed. Patients were followed up clinically and with intraoral and panoramic radiographs. Any postoperative complications, including swelling, discomfort, infection, fractures, and implant loss, were recorded, and sinus bone gain was measured. Thirty-one sinuses were elevated and 35 implants were placed. Patients were a mean of 41.2 ± 6.69 years old, and 45% were women. The sinus was elevated to 7 to 15 mm, and no membrane perforations were noted. The mean follow-up period was 21 weeks. The mean bone gain under the maxillary sinus was 12.03 ± 2.1 mm, and all implants displayed primary stability with a mean insertion torque ≥ 15 Ncm. No postoperative discomfort, swelling, hematoma, infection, or bone fenestration was noted. One patient experienced prolonged edema in the lower eyelid region, and another lost an implant. In this retrospective analysis, flapless crestal sinus floor elevation was safe and effective, decreasing surgical discomfort and trauma and early implant failures.

Estimating shallow subsidence in microtidal salt marshes of the southeastern United States: Kaye and Barghoorn revisited

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cahoon, D.R.; Reed, D.J.; Day, J.W.

1995-01-01

Simultaneous measurements of vertical accretion and change in surface elevation relative to a shallow (3-5 m) subsurface datum were made in selected coastal salt marshes of Louisiana, Florida, and North Carolina to quantitatively test Kaye and Barghoorn's contention that vertical accretion is not a good surrogate for surface elevation change because of autocompaction of the substrate. Rates of subsidence of the upper 3-5 m of marsh substrate were calculated for each marsh as the difference between vertical accretion and elevation change measured with feldspar marker horizons and a sedimentation-erosion table. Surface elevation change was significantly lower than vertical accretion at each site after 2 years, indicating a significant amount of shallow subsidence had occurred, ranging from 0.45 to 4.90 cm. The highest rate of shallow subsidence occurred in the Mississippi delta. Results confirm Kaye and Barghoorn's contention that vertical accretion is not generally a good surrogate for elevation change because of processes occurring in the upper few meters of the substrate, including not only compaction but also apparently shrink-swell from water storage and/or plant production--decomposition at some sites. Indeed, surface elevation change was completely decoupled from vertical accretion at the Florida site. The assumption of a 1:1 relationship between accretionary and substrate processes. Consequently, the potential for coastal marsh submergence should be expressed as an elevation deficit based on direct measures of surface elevation change rather than accretion deficits. These findings also indicate the need for greater understanding of the influence of subsurface and small-scale hydrologic processes on marsh surface elevation.

Trait-based diversification shifts reflect differential extinction among fossil taxa

PubMed Central

Wagner, Peter J.; Estabrook, George F.

2014-01-01

Evolution provides many cases of apparent shifts in diversification associated with particular anatomical traits. Three general models connect these patterns to anatomical evolution: (i) elevated net extinction of taxa bearing particular traits, (ii) elevated net speciation of taxa bearing particular traits, and (iii) elevated evolvability expanding the range of anatomies available to some species. Trait-based diversification shifts predict elevated hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility (i.e., primitive→derived→highly derived sequences) among pairs of anatomical characters. The three specific models further predict (i) early loss of diversity for taxa retaining primitive conditions (elevated net extinction), (ii) increased diversification among later members of a clade (elevated net speciation), and (iii) increased disparity among later members in a clade (elevated evolvability). Analyses of 319 anatomical and stratigraphic datasets for fossil species and genera show that hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility exceeds the expectations of trait-independent diversification in the vast majority of cases, which was expected if trait-dependent diversification shifts are common. Excess hierarchical stratigraphic compatibility correlates with early loss of diversity for groups retaining primitive conditions rather than delayed bursts of diversity or disparity across entire clades. Cambrian clades (predominantly trilobites) alone fit null expectations well. However, it is not clear whether evolution was unusual among Cambrian taxa or only early trilobites. At least among post-Cambrian taxa, these results implicate models, such as competition and extinction selectivity/resistance, as major drivers of trait-based diversification shifts at the species and genus levels while contradicting the predictions of elevated net speciation and elevated evolvability models. PMID:25331898

A Systematic Review of Global Drivers of Ant Elevational Diversity

PubMed Central

Szewczyk, Tim; McCain, Christy M.

2016-01-01

Ant diversity shows a variety of patterns across elevational gradients, though the patterns and drivers have not been evaluated comprehensively. In this systematic review and reanalysis, we use published data on ant elevational diversity to detail the observed patterns and to test the predictions and interactions of four major diversity hypotheses: thermal energy, the mid-domain effect, area, and the elevational climate model. Of sixty-seven published datasets from the literature, only those with standardized, comprehensive sampling were used. Datasets included both local and regional ant diversity and spanned 80° in latitude across six biogeographical provinces. We used a combination of simulations, linear regressions, and non-parametric statistics to test multiple quantitative predictions of each hypothesis. We used an environmentally and geometrically constrained model as well as multiple regression to test their interactions. Ant diversity showed three distinct patterns across elevations: most common were hump-shaped mid-elevation peaks in diversity, followed by low-elevation plateaus and monotonic decreases in the number of ant species. The elevational climate model, which proposes that temperature and precipitation jointly drive diversity, and area were partially supported as independent drivers. Thermal energy and the mid-domain effect were not supported as primary drivers of ant diversity globally. The interaction models supported the influence of multiple drivers, though not a consistent set. In contrast to many vertebrate taxa, global ant elevational diversity patterns appear more complex, with the best environmental model contingent on precipitation levels. Differences in ecology and natural history among taxa may be crucial to the processes influencing broad-scale diversity patterns. PMID:27175999

Climate contributes to zonal forest mortality in Southern California's San Jacinto Mountains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fellows, A.; Goulden, M.

2010-12-01

An estimated 4.6 million trees died over ~375,000 acres of Southern California forest in 2002-2004. This mortality punctuated a decline in forest health that has been attributed to air pollution, stem densification, or drought. Bark beetles were the proximate cause of most tree death but the underlying cause of this extensive mortality is arguably poor forest health. We investigated the contributions that climate, particularly drought, played in tree mortality and how physiological drought stress may have structured the observed patterns of mortality. Field surveys showed that conifer mortality was zonal in the San Jacinto Mountains of Southern California. The proportion of conifer mortality increased with decreasing elevation (p=0.01). Mid-elevation conifers (White Fir, Incense Cedar, Coulter Pine, Sugar Pine, Ponderosa and Jeffrey Pine) died in the lower portions of their respective ranges, which resulted in an upslope lean in species’ distribution and an upslope shift in species’ mean elevation. Long-term precipitation (P) is consistent with elevation over the conifer elevation range (p=0.43). Potential evapotranspiration (ET) estimated by Penman Monteith declines with elevation by nearly half over the same range. These trends suggest that ET, more than P, is critical in structuring the elevational trend in drought stress and may have contributed to the patterns of mortality that occurred in 2002-04. Physiological measurements in a mild drought year (2009) showed late summer declines in plant water availability with decreasing elevation (p < 0.01) and concomitant reductions in carbon assimilation and stomatal conductance with decreasing elevation. We tie these observations together with a simple water balance model.

Testosterone and Haemosporidian Parasites Along a Tropical Elevational Gradient in Rufous-Collared Sparrows (Zonotrichia capensis).

PubMed

Escallón, Camilo; Weinstein, Nicole M; Tallant, James A; Wojtenek, Winfried; Rodríguez-Saltos, Carlos A; Bonaccorso, Elisa; Moore, Ignacio T

2016-10-01

Elevation has been proposed as a dominant ecological variable shaping life history traits and subsequently their underlying hormonal mechanisms. In an earlier meta-analysis of tropical birds, elevation was positively related to testosterone levels. Furthermore, parasitism by avian haemosporidians should vary with elevation as environmental conditions affect vector abundance, and while testosterone is needed for breeding, it is hypothesized to be immunosuppressive and thus could exacerbate haemosporidian infection. Our objective in this study was to examine the relationships between elevation, testosterone levels, and parasitism by avian haemosporidians. We surveyed breeding male rufous-collared sparrows (Zonotrichia capensis) across a wide elevational range along the equator. We measured baseline testosterone levels, haemosporidian infection at four elevations spanning the species' natural range in the Ecuadorian Andes (600, 1500, 2100, 3300 m). Testosterone levels from breeding males were not related to elevation, but there was high intrapopulation variability. Testosterone levels were not related to the probability of parasitism, but our results from one population suggested that the likelihood of being infected by haemosporidian parasites was greater when in breeding condition. In conclusion, even though there is variation in life history strategies among the studied populations, wider divergence in seasonality and life history traits would probably be needed to detect an effect of elevation on testosterone if one exists. Additionally, our results show that variation in testosterone is not related to infection risk of haemosporidians, thus other factors that take a toll on energetic resources, such as reproduction, should be looked at more closely. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The effects of plane and arc of elevation on electromyography of shoulder musculature in patients with rotator cuff tears.

PubMed

Alenabi, Talia; Dal Maso, Fabien; Tétreault, Patrice; Begon, Mickaël

2016-02-01

Arm elevations in different planes are commonly assessed in clinics and are included in rehabilitation protocols for patients with rotator cuff pathology. The aim of this study was to quantify the effect of plane and angle of elevation on shoulder muscles activity in patients with symptomatic rotator cuff tear to be used for rehabilitation purposes. Eight symptomatic patients with rotator cuff tears were assessed by using EMG (11 surface and 2 fine wire electrodes) synchronized with a motion analysis. The subjects completed five elevations in full can position (arm externally rotated and thumb up) in frontal, scapular and sagittal planes. Muscle activity in three elevation arcs of 20° (from 0° to 60°) was presented as the percentage of mean activity. Data were analyzed by mixed linear models (α=0.003), and Tuckey Post-hoc comparisons for significant effects (α=0.05). The effect of plane was significant for supraspinatus, middle trapezius, anterior, middle, and posterior deltoid, triceps, and pectoralis major (P<0.001). Supraspinatus was more active during abduction than scaption and flexion (P<0.05), and its activity did not increase significantly after 40° of elevation (P>0.05). Infraspinatus had similar activity pattern in the three planes of elevation (P>0.003) with increasing trend in accordance with the elevation angle. In any rehabilitation protocol, if less activity of supraspinatus is desired, active arm elevation should be directed toward flexion and scaption and postponed abduction to prevent high level of activity in this muscle. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elevational diversity and distribution of ammonia-oxidizing archaea community in meadow soils on the Tibetan Plateau.

PubMed

Zhao, Kang; Kong, Weidong; Khan, Ajmal; Liu, Jinbo; Guo, Guangxia; Muhanmmad, Said; Zhang, Xianzhou; Dong, Xiaobin

2017-09-01

Unraveling elevational diversity patterns of plants and animals has long been attracting scientific interests. However, whether soil microorganisms exhibit similar elevational patterns remains largely less explored, especially for functional microbial communities, such as ammonia oxidizers. Here, we investigated the diversity and distribution pattern of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) in meadow soils along an elevation gradient from 4400 m to the grassline at 5100 m on the Tibetan Plateau using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and sequencing methods by targeting amoA gene. Increasing elevations led to lower soil temperature and pH, but higher nutrients and water content. The results showed that AOA diversity and evenness monotonically increased with elevation, while richness was relatively stable. The increase of diversity and evenness was attributed to the growth inhibition of warm-adapted AOA phylotypes by lower temperature and the growth facilitation of cold-adapted AOA phylotypes by richer nutrients at higher elevations. Low temperature thus played an important role in the AOA growth and niche separation. The AOA community variation was explained by the combined effect of all soil properties (32.6%), and 8.1% of the total variation was individually explained by soil pH. The total AOA abundance decreased, whereas soil potential nitrification rate (PNR) increased with increasing elevations. Soil PNR positively correlated with the abundance of cold-adapted AOA phylotypes. Our findings suggest that low temperature plays an important role in AOA elevational diversity pattern and niche separation, rising the negative effects of warming on AOA diversity and soil nitrification process in the Tibetan region.

Nitrogen assimilation and transpiration: key processes conditioning responsiveness of wheat to elevated [CO2] and temperature.

PubMed

Jauregui, Iván; Aroca, Ricardo; Garnica, María; Zamarreño, Ángel M; García-Mina, José M; Serret, Maria D; Parry, Martin; Irigoyen, Juan J; Aranjuelo, Iker

2015-11-01

Although climate scenarios have predicted an increase in [CO(2)] and temperature conditions, to date few experiments have focused on the interaction of [CO(2)] and temperature effects in wheat development. Recent evidence suggests that photosynthetic acclimation is linked to the photorespiration and N assimilation inhibition of plants exposed to elevated CO(2). The main goal of this study was to analyze the effect of interacting [CO(2)] and temperature on leaf photorespiration, C/N metabolism and N transport in wheat plants exposed to elevated [CO(2)] and temperature conditions. For this purpose, wheat plants were exposed to elevated [CO(2)] (400 vs 700 µmol mol(-1)) and temperature (ambient vs ambient + 4°C) in CO(2) gradient greenhouses during the entire life cycle. Although at the agronomic level, elevated temperature had no effect on plant biomass, physiological analyses revealed that combined elevated [CO(2)] and temperature negatively affected photosynthetic performance. The limited energy levels resulting from the reduced respiratory and photorespiration rates of such plants were apparently inadequate to sustain nitrate reductase activity. Inhibited N assimilation was associated with a strong reduction in amino acid content, conditioned leaf soluble protein content and constrained leaf N status. Therefore, the plant response to elevated [CO(2)] and elevated temperature resulted in photosynthetic acclimation. The reduction in transpiration rates induced limitations in nutrient transport in leaves of plants exposed to elevated [CO(2)] and temperature, led to mineral depletion and therefore contributed to the inhibition of photosynthetic activity. © 2015 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

Expression of calcification and metabolism-related genes in response to elevated pCO2 and temperature in the reef-building coral Acropora millepora.

PubMed

Rocker, Melissa M; Noonan, Sam; Humphrey, Craig; Moya, Aurelie; Willis, Bette L; Bay, Line K

2015-12-01

Declining health of scleractinian corals in response to deteriorating environmental conditions is widely acknowledged, however links between physiological and functional genomic responses of corals are less well understood. Here we explore growth and the expression of 20 target genes with putative roles in metabolism and calcification in the branching coral, Acropora millepora, in two separate experiments: 1) elevated pCO2 (464, 822, 1187 and 1638 μatm) and ambient temperature (27°C), and 2) elevated pCO2 (490 and 822 μatm) and temperature (28 and 31 °C). After 14 days of exposure to elevated pCO2 and ambient temperatures, no evidence of differential expression of either calcification or metabolism genes was detected between control and elevated pCO2 treatments. After 37 days of exposure to control and elevated pCO2, Ubiquinol-Cytochrome-C Reductase Subunit 2 gene (QCR2; a gene involved in complex III of the electron chain transport within the mitochondria and critical for generation of ATP) was significantly down-regulated in the elevated pCO2 treatment in both ambient and elevated temperature treatments. Overall, the general absence of a strong response to elevated pCO2 and temperature by the other 19 targeted calcification and metabolism genes suggests that corals may not be affected by these stressors on longer time scales (37 days). These results also highlight the potential for QCR2 to act as a biomarker of coral genomic responses to changing environments. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

2. View facing north of west and south elevations of ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. View facing north of west and south elevations of Dixie Cotton Mill. The brick structure that forms the west elevation was added in 1913. - Dixie Cotton Mill, 710 Greenville Street, La Grange, Troup County, GA

Soil and stream chemistry relationships in high elevation waters

Treesearch

Jennifer Knoepp; Katherine J. Elliott; William A. Jackson; James M. Vose; Chelcy Ford Miniat; Stan Zarnoch

2016-01-01

High elevation watersheds in the southern Appalachian Mountains have unique soils and vegetation communities. They also receive greater inputs of acidic deposition as a result of increased precipitation compared to lower elevation sites.

Ice elevation change from Swath Processing of CryoSat SARIn Mode Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foresta, Luca; Gourmelen, Noel; Shepherd, Andrew; Muir, Alan; Nienow, Pete

2015-04-01

Reference and repeat-observations of Glacier and Ice Sheet Margin (GISM) topography are critical to identify changes in ice elevation, provide estimates of mass gain or loss and thus quantify the contribution of the cryosphere to sea level rise (e.g. McMillan et al., 2014). The Synthetic Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL) onboard the ESA radar altimetry CryoSat (CS) mission has collected ice elevation measurements since 2010. The corresponding SARIn mode of operation, activated over GISM areas, provides high spatial resolution in the along-track direction while resolving the angular origin of echoes (i.e. across-track). The current ESA SARIn processor calculates the elevation of the Point Of Closest Approach (POCA) within each waveform and maps of elevation change in Antarctica and Greenland have been produced using the regular CS height product (McMillan et al., 2014; Helm et al., 2014). Data from the CS-SARIn mode has also been used to produce measurements of ice elevation beyond the POCA, also known as swath elevation (Hawley et al. 2009; Gray et al., 2013; ESA-STSE CryoTop project). Here we use the swath processing approach to generate maps of ice elevation change from selected regions around the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. We discuss the impact of the swath processing on the spatial resolution and precision of the resulting ice elevation field and compare our results to current dh/dt estimates. References: ESA STSE CryoTop project - http://www.stse-cryotop.org/ Gray L., Burgess D., Copland L., Cullen R., Galin N., Hawley R. and Helm V. Interferometric swath processing of Cryosat data for glacial ice topography. The Cryosphere, 7(6):1857-1867, December 2013. Hawley R.L., Shepherd A., Cullen R., Helm V. and WIngham D.J. Ice-sheet elevations from across-track processing of airborne interferometric radar altimetry. Geophysical Research Letters, 36(22):L22501, November 2009. Helm V., Humbert A. and Miller H. Elevation and elevation change of Greenland and Antarctica derived from CryoSat-2. The Cryosphere, 8(4):1539-1559, August 2014. McMillan M., Shepherd A., Sundal A., Briggs K., Muir A., Ridout A., Hogg A. and Wingham D. Increased ice losses from Antarctica detected by CryoSat-2. Geophysical Research Letters, pages 3899-3905, 2014.

Continental extension, magmatism and elevation; formal relations and rules of thumb

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lachenbruch, A.H.; Morgan, P.

1990-01-01

To investigate simplified relations between elevation and the extensional, magmatic and thermal processes that influence lithosphere buoyancy, we assume that the lithosphere floats on an asthenosphere of uniform density and has no flexural strength. A simple graph relating elevation to lithosphere density and thickness provides an overview of expectable conditions around the earth and a simple test for consistancy of continental and oceanic lithosphere models. The mass-balance relations yield simple general rules for estimating elevation changes caused by various tectonic, magmatic and thermal processes without referring to detailed models. The rules are general because they depend principally on buoyancy, which under our assumptions is specified by elevation, a known quantity; they do not generally require a knowledge of lithosphere thickness and density. The elevation of an extended terrain contains important information on its tectonic and magmatic history. In the Great Basin where Cenozoic extension is estimated to be 100%, the present high mean elevation ( ~ 1.75 km) probably requires substantial low-density magmatic contributions to the extending lithosphere. The elevation cannot be reasonably explained solely as the buoyant residue of a very high initial terrane, or of a lithosphere that was initially very thick and subsequently delaminated and heated. Even models with a high initial elevation typically call for 10 km or so of accumulated magmatic material of near-crustal density. To understand the evolution of the Great Basin, it is important to determine whether such intruded material is present; some could replenish the stretching crust by underplating and crustal intrusion and some might reside in the upper mantle. The elevation maintained or approached by an intruded extending lithosphere depends on the ratio B of how fast magma is supplied from the asthenosphere ( b km/Ma) to how fast the lithosphere spreads the magma out by extension (?? Ma-1). For a surface maintained 2 1 2km below sea level (e.g., an ocean ridge) B is about 5 km; for continental extension the ratio may be much greater. The frequent association of volcanism with continental extension, the high elevation (and buoyancy) of some appreciably extended terrains, and the oceanic spreading analog all suggest that magmatism may play an important role in continental extension. Better estimates of total extension and elevation change in extended regions can help to identify that role. ?? 1990.

The Research on Elevation Change of Antarctic Ice Sheet Based on CRYOSAT-2 Alimeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Q.; Wan, J.; Liu, S.; Li, Y.

2018-04-01

In this paper, the Cryosat-2 altimeter data distributed by the ESA, and these data are processed to extract the information of the elevation change of the Antarctic ice sheet from 2010 to 2017. Firstly, the main pretreatment preprocessing for Cryosat-2 altimetry data is crossover adjustment and elimination of rough difference. Then the grid DEM of the Antarctic ice sheet was constructed by using the kriging interpolation method,and analyzed the spatial characteristic time characteristics of the Antarctic ice sheet. The latitude-weighted elevation can be obtained by using the elevation data of each cycle, and then the general trend of the Antarctic ice sheet elevation variation can be seen roughly.

Fuel retention under elevated wall temperature in KSTAR with a carbon wall

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, B.; Hong, S. H.

2018-03-01

The fuel retention during KSTAR discharges with elevated wall temperature (150 °C) has been studied by using the method of global particle balance. The results show that the elevated wall temperature could reduce the dynamic retention via implantation and absorption, especially for the short pulse shots with large injected fuel particles. There is no signature changing of long-term retention, which related to co-deposition, under elevated wall temperature. For soft-landing shots (normal shots), the exhausted fuel particles during discharges is larger with elevated wall temperature than without, but the exhausted particles after discharges within 90 s looks similar. The outgassing particles because of disruption could be exhausted within 15 s.

Probability function of breaking-limited surface elevation. [wind generated waves of ocean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tung, C. C.; Huang, N. E.; Yuan, Y.; Long, S. R.

1989-01-01

The effect of wave breaking on the probability function of surface elevation is examined. The surface elevation limited by wave breaking zeta sub b(t) is first related to the original wave elevation zeta(t) and its second derivative. An approximate, second-order, nonlinear, non-Gaussian model for zeta(t) of arbitrary but moderate bandwidth is presented, and an expression for the probability density function zeta sub b(t) is derived. The results show clearly that the effect of wave breaking on the probability density function of surface elevation is to introduce a secondary hump on the positive side of the probability density function, a phenomenon also observed in wind wave tank experiments.

Effects of prescribed burning on marsh-elevation change and the risk of wetland loss

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKee, Karen L.; Grace, James B.

2012-01-01

Marsh-elevation change is the net effect of biophysical processes controlling inputs versus losses of soil volume. In many marshes, accumulation of organic matter is an important contributor to soil volume and vertical land building. In this study, we examined how prescribed burning, a common marsh-management practice, may affect elevation dynamics in the McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge, Texas by altering organic-matter accumulation. Experimental plots were established in a brackish marsh dominated by Spartina patens, a grass found throughout the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic marshes. Experimental plots were subjected to burning and nutrient-addition treatments and monitored for 3.5 years (April 2005 – November 2008). Half of the plots were burned once in 2006; half of the plots were fertilized seasonally with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Before and after the burns, seasonal measurements were made of soil physicochemistry, vegetation structure, standing and fallen plant biomass, aboveground and belowground production, decomposition, and accretion and elevation change (measured with Surface Elevation Tables (SET)). Movements in different soil strata (surface, root zone, subroot zone) were evaluated to identify which processes were contributing to elevation change. Because several hurricanes occurred during the study period, we also assessed how these storms affected elevation change rates. The main findings of this study were as follows: 1. The main drivers of elevation change were accretion on the marsh surface and subsurface movement below the root zone, but the relative influence of these processes varied temporally. Prior to Hurricanes Gustav and Ike (September 2008), the main driver was subsurface movement; after the hurricane, both accretion and subsurface movement were important. 2. Prior to Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, rates of elevation gain and accretion above a marker horizon were higher in burned plots compared to nonburned plots, whereas nutrient addition had no detectable influence on elevation dynamics. 3. Burning decreased standing and fallen plant litter, reducing fuel load. Hurricanes Gustav and Ike also removed fallen litter from all plots. 4. Aboveground and belowground production rates varied annually but were unaffected by burning and nutrient treatments. 5. Decomposition (of a standard cellulose material) in upper soil layers was increased in burned plots but was unaffected by nutrient treatments. 6. Soil physicochemistry was unaffected by burning or nutrient treatments. 7. The elevation deficit (difference between rate of submergence and vertical land development) prior to hurricanes was less in burned plots (6.2 millimeters per year [mm yr-1]) compared to nonburned plots (7.2 mm yr-1). 8. Storm sediments delivered by Hurricane Ike raised elevations an average of 7.4 centimeters (cm), which countered an elevation deficit that had accrued over 11 years. Our findings provide preliminary insights into elevation dynamics occurring in brackish marshes of the Texas Chenier Plain under prescribed fire management. The results of this study indicate that prescribed burning conducted at 3- to 5-year intervals is not likely to negatively impact the long-term sustainability of S. patens-dominated brackish marshes at McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge and may offset existing elevation deficits by ≈ 1 mm yr-1. The primary drivers of elevation change varied in time and space, leading to a more complex situation in terms of predicting how disturbances may alter elevation trajectories. The potential effect of burning on elevation change in other marshes will depend on several site-specific factors, including geomorphic/ sedimentary setting, tide range, local rate of relative sea level rise, plant species composition, additional management practices (for example, for flood control), and disturbance types and frequency (for example, hurricanes or herbivore grazing). Increasing the scope of inference would require installation of SETs in replicate marshes undergoing different prescribed fire intervals and in different geomorphic settings (with different hurricane frequencies and/or different sedimentary settings). Multiple locations along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts where prescribed fire is used as a management tool could provide the appropriate setting for these installations.

Parameter variation effects on temperature elevation in a steady-state, one-dimensional thermal model for millimeter wave exposure of one- and three-layer human tissue.

PubMed

Kanezaki, Akio; Hirata, Akimasa; Watanabe, Soichi; Shirai, Hiroshi

2010-08-21

The present study describes theoretical parametric analysis of the steady-state temperature elevation in one-dimensional three-layer (skin, fat and muscle) and one-layer (skin only) models due to millimeter-wave exposure. The motivation of this fundamental investigation is that some variability of warmth sensation in the human skin has been reported. An analytical solution for a bioheat equation was derived by using the Laplace transform for the one-dimensional human models. Approximate expressions were obtained to investigate the dependence of temperature elevation on different thermal and tissue thickness parameters. It was shown that the temperature elevation on the body surface decreases monotonically with the blood perfusion rate, heat conductivity and heat transfer from the body to air. Also revealed were the conditions where maximum and minimum surface temperature elevations were observed for different thermal and tissue thickness parameters. The surface temperature elevation in the three-layer model is 1.3-2.8 times greater than that in the one-layer model. The main reason for this difference is attributed to the adiabatic nature of the fat layer. By considering the variation range of thermal and tissue thickness parameters which causes the maximum and minimum temperature elevations, the dominant parameter influencing the surface temperature elevation was found to be the heat transfer coefficient between the body surface and air.

A stochastic, evolutionary model for range shifts and richness on tropical elevational gradients under Quaternary glacial cycles

PubMed Central

Colwell, Robert K.; Rangel, Thiago F.

2010-01-01

Quaternary glacial–interglacial cycles repeatedly forced thermal zones up and down the slopes of mountains, at all latitudes. Although no one doubts that these temperature cycles have left their signature on contemporary patterns of geography and phylogeny, the relative roles of ecology and evolution are not well understood, especially for the tropics. To explore key mechanisms and their interactions in the context of chance events, we constructed a geographical range-based, stochastic simulation model that incorporates speciation, anagenetic evolution, niche conservatism, range shifts and extinctions under late Quaternary temperature cycles along tropical elevational gradients. In the model, elevational patterns of species richness arise from the differential survival of founder lineages, consolidated by speciation and the inheritance of thermal niche characteristics. The model yields a surprisingly rich variety of realistic patterns of phylogeny and biogeography, including close matches to a variety of contemporary elevational richness profiles from an elevational transect in Costa Rica. Mountaintop extinctions during interglacials and lowland extinctions at glacial maxima favour mid-elevation lineages, especially under the constraints of niche conservatism. Asymmetry in temperature (greater duration of glacial than of interglacial episodes) and in lateral area (greater land area at low than at high elevations) have opposing effects on lowland extinctions and the elevational pattern of species richness in the model—and perhaps in nature, as well. PMID:20980317

[Prevalence of Elevated Lipoprotein (a) Levels in Patients < 60 Years of Age with Retinal Vein Occlusion].

PubMed

Kuhli-Hattenbach, C; Hellstern, P; Miesbach, W; Kohnen, T; Hattenbach, L-O

2018-01-01

The potential impact of elevated Lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] levels on retinal venous occlusive (RVO) diseases with regard to age and various risk factors has not been studied extensively. In a retrospective case-control study, thrombophilia data of 106 young patients (< 60 years at the time of the RVO or a previous thromboembolic event) with RVO and 76 healthy subjects were evaluated. Elevated Lp(a) plasma levels were significantly more prevalent among RVO patients (29.2 %) than among controls (9.2 %; p = 0.0009). Lp(a) levels were found to be significantly (p = 0.012) different between patients and controls. Moreover, we found that an unusual personal or family history of thromboembolism was a strong predictor of elevated Lp(a) (p = 0.03). We observed a significant correlation between elevated Lp(a) and other coagulation disorders (p = 0.005). Multivariate analysis showed that elevated lipoprotein(a) levels (OR: 3.5; p = 0.003) were an independent risk factor for the development of RVO. Elevated plasma levels of Lp(a) are associated with the development of RVO. Selective screening of young patients and subjects with a personal or family history of thromboembolism may be helpful in identifying RVO patients with elevated Lp(a). Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Risk of Liver Toxicity with Nivolumab Immunotherapy in Cancer Patients.

PubMed

Zarrabi, Kevin; Wu, Shenhong

2018-01-01

Nivolumab is approved for the treatment of many cancers. This meta-analysis was conducted to determine the risk of hepatotoxicity with nivolumab therapy. An analysis from all phase I-III clinical trials up to December 2016 examining nivolumab was conducted. Data on elevations in aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were extracted from the safety profiles of each trial. Incidence and relative risk (RR) were calculated using random- or fixed-effects models with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The incidences of all-grade and high-grade elevations in AST were 5.4% (95% CI 3.2-9.1) and 1.6% (95% CI 0.9-3.0), respectively. The incidences of all-grade and high-grade elevations in ALT were 4.9% (95% CI 2.9-8.2) and 1.7% (95% CI 0.9-3.1), respectively. Elevations of both laboratory markers were significantly increased when compared to control (p < 0.001). Nivolumab significantly increased the RR of AST/ALT elevations; RRs were 1.58 (95% CI 1.1-2.2) for all-grade AST elevation, and 1.62 (95% CI 1.2-2.3) for all-grade ALT elevation. Subgroup analysis of all-grade AST or ALT elevation revealed a signi-ficant variation among tumor types (p < 0.001) and with combination with ipilimumab (p < 0.001). Nivolumab is associated with significantly increased risk of liver toxicity. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Alterations in gonadotropin secretion and ovarian function in prepubertal gilts by elevated environmental temperature.

PubMed

Flowers, B; Day, B N

1990-03-01

The effect of chronic exposure to elevated environmental temperature on gonadotropin secretion and ovarian function was studied in prepubertal gilts. Gilts were maintained under control (15.6 degrees C) or elevated temperature (33.3 degrees C) conditions from 150 to 180 days of age. Endocrine and ovarian responses to bilateral (BLO), unilateral (ULO), and sham ovariectomy were evaluated between 175 and 180 days of age. During the 96-h sampling period after BLO, plasma concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) were suppressed in heat-stressed females. Similarly, elevated temperatures abolished the transient rise in FSH and subsequent follicular growth normally associated with ULO. In contrast, environmental treatment had no effect on the secretion of FSH and LH after sham ovariectomy, yet the number of small follicles was lower in gilts exposed to elevated temperatures than in females maintained under control conditions. These results indicate that a chronic exposure to elevated environmental temperature during pubertal development diminished the ability of the hypothalamo-hypophyseal axis to secrete FSH and LH, which had physiological consequences on follicular growth. When provided an appropriate stimulus (ULO), an acute period of FSH secretion and subsequent development of follicles failed to occur in females exposed to elevated temperatures. Consequently, we propose that delayed puberty in gilts during periods of elevated environmental temperatures is due, in part, to a diminished capacity for gonadotropin secretion.

Ecological effects of feral biofuel crops in constructed oak ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The effects of elevated temperatures and drought on constructed oak savannahs were studied to determine the interactive effects of potentially invasive feral biofuel species and climate change on native grassland communities. A total of 12 sunlit mesocosm were used. Each mesocosm held three tubs. One had six native plant species; one had five native species with the annual crop Sorghum bicolor and one had five native species along with the weedy perennial Sorghum halepense. The experimental treatments were ambient (control), elevated temperature, drought, or a combination of elevated temperature and drought. Total aboveground biomass of the community was greatest in the control and drought treatments, lowest with elevated temperature + drought, and intermediate in high temperature treatments (P<0.0001). Sorghum species produced significantly less biomass than the native grass species (P< 0.05). S. bicolor seed biomass was greatest under elevated temperature and lowest in the elevated temperature + drought treatment (P=0.0002). Neither of the Sorghum species significantly affected active soil bacterial biomass. Active bacterial biomass was lowest in the drought and elevated temperature and drought treatments (P<0.05). Active soil fungal biomass was highest in the tubs containing S. bicolor. Percent total carbon in the soil increased between 2010 and 2011 (P=0.0054); it was lowest in the elevated temperature and drought mesocosms (P<0.05). Longer term studi

The impact of elevated carbon dioxide on the phosphorus nutrition of plants: a review

PubMed Central

Jin, Jian; Tang, Caixian; Sale, Peter

2015-01-01

Background Increasing attention is being focused on the influence of rapid increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration on nutrient cycling in ecosystems. An understanding of how elevated CO2 affects plant utilization and acquisition of phosphorus (P) will be critical for P management to maintain ecosystem sustainability in P-deficient regions. Scope This review focuses on the impact of elevated CO2 on plant P demand, utilization in plants and P acquisition from soil. Several knowledge gaps on elevated CO2-P associations are highlighted. Conclusions Significant increases in P demand by plants are likely to happen under elevated CO2 due to the stimulation of photosynthesis, and subsequent growth responses. Elevated CO2 alters P acquisition through changes in root morphology and increases in rooting depth. Moreover, the quantity and composition of root exudates are likely to change under elevated CO2, due to the changes in carbon fluxes along the glycolytic pathway and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. As a consequence, these root exudates may lead to P mobilization by the chelation of P from sparingly soluble P complexes, by the alteration of the biochemical environment and by changes to microbial activity in the rhizosphere. Future research on chemical, molecular, microbiological and physiological aspects is needed to improve understanding of how elevated CO2 might affect the use and acquisition of P by plants. PMID:26113632

Elevated O3 and TYLCV Infection Reduce the Suitability of Tomato as a Host for the Whitefly Bemisia tabaci

PubMed Central

Cui, Hongying; Sun, Yucheng; Chen, Fajun; Zhang, Youjun; Ge, Feng

2016-01-01

The effects of elevated atmospheric ozone (O3) levels on herbivorous insects have been well studied, but little is known about the combined effects of elevated O3 and virus infection on herbivorous insect performance. Using open-top chambers in the field, we determined the effects of elevated O3 and Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) infection on wild-type (Wt) tomato and 35S tomato (jasmonic acid (JA) defense-enhanced genotype) in association with whitefly, Bemisia tabaci Gennadius biotype B. Elevated O3 and TYLCV infection, alone and in combination, significantly reduced the contents of soluble sugars and free amino acids, increased the contents of total phenolics and condensed tannins, and increased salicylic acid (SA) content and the expression of SA-related genes in leaves. The JA signaling pathway was upregulated by elevated O3, but downregulated by TYLCV infection and O3 + TYLCV infection. Regardless of plant genotype, elevated O3, TYLCV infection, or O3 + TYLCV infection significantly decreased B. tabaci fecundity and abundance. These results suggest that elevated O3 and TYLCV infection, alone and in combination, reduce the nutrients available for B. tabaci, increase SA content and SA-related gene expression, and increase secondary metabolites, resulting in decreases in fecundity and abundance of B. tabaci in both tomato genotypes. PMID:27916792

Biochar addition induced the same plant responses as elevated CO2 in mine spoil.

PubMed

Zhang, Yaling; Drigo, Barbara; Bai, Shahla Hosseini; Menke, Carl; Zhang, Manyun; Xu, Zhihong

2018-01-01

Nitrogen (N) limitation is one of the major constrain factors for biochar in improving plant growth, the same for elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). Hence, we hypothesized that (1) biochar would induce the same plant responses as elevated CO 2 under N-poor conditions; (2) elevated CO 2 would decrease the potential of biochar application in improving plant growth. To test these hypotheses, we assessed the effects of pinewood biochar, produced at three pyrolytic temperatures (650, 750 and 850 °C), on C and N allocation at the whole-plant level of three plant species (Austrostipa ramossissima, Dichelachne micrantha and Isolepis nodosa) grown in the N poor mine spoil under both ambient (400 μL L -1 ) and elevated (700 μL L -1 ) CO 2 concentrations. Our data showed that biochar addition (1) significantly decreased leaf total N and δ 15 N (P < 0.05); (2) decreased leaf total N and δ 15 N more pronouncedly than those of root; and (3) showed more pronounced effects on improving plant biomass under ambient CO 2 than under elevated CO 2 concentration. Hence, it remained a strong possibility that biochar addition induced the same plant physiological responses as elevated CO 2 in the N-deficient mine spoil. As expected, elevated CO 2 decreased the ability of biochar addition in improving plant growth.

Seed origin and warming constrain lodgepole pine recruitment, slowing the pace of population range shifts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Conlisk, Erin; Castanha, Cristina; Germino, Matthew; Veblen, Thomas T.; Smith, Jeremy M.; Moyes, Andrew B.; Kueppers, Lara M.

2018-01-01

Understanding how climate warming will affect the demographic rates of different ecotypes is critical to predicting shifts in species distributions. Here we present results from a common garden, climate change experiment in which we measured seedling recruitment of lodgepole pine, a widespread North American conifer that is also planted globally. Seeds from a low-elevation provenance had greater recruitment to their third year (by 323%) than seeds from a high-elevation provenance across sites within and above its native elevation range and across climate manipulations. Heating reduced (by 49%) recruitment to the third year of both low- and high-elevation seed sources across the elevation gradient, while watering alleviated some of the negative effects of heating (108% increase in watered plots). Demographic models based on recruitment data from the climate manipulations and long-term observations of adult populations revealed that heating could effectively halt modeled upslope range expansion except when combined with watering. Simulating fire and rapid post-fire forest recovery at lower elevations accelerated lodgepole pine expansion into the alpine, but did not alter final abundance rankings among climate scenarios. Regardless of climate scenario, greater recruitment of low-elevation seeds compensated for longer dispersal distances to treeline, assuming colonization was allowed to proceed over multiple centuries. Our results show that ecotypes from lower elevations within a species’ range could enhance recruitment and facilitate upslope range shifts with climate change.

Elevated ozone reduces photosynthetic carbon gain by accelerating leaf senescence of inbred and hybrid maize in a genotype-specific manner.

PubMed

Yendrek, Craig R; Erice, Gorka; Montes, Christopher M; Tomaz, Tiago; Sorgini, Crystal A; Brown, Patrick J; McIntyre, Lauren M; Leakey, Andrew D B; Ainsworth, Elizabeth A

2017-12-01

Exposure to elevated tropospheric ozone concentration ([O 3 ]) accelerates leaf senescence in many C 3 crops. However, the effects of elevated [O 3 ] on C 4 crops including maize (Zea mays L.) are poorly understood in terms of physiological mechanism and genetic variation in sensitivity. Using free air gas concentration enrichment, we investigated the photosynthetic response of 18 diverse maize inbred and hybrid lines to season-long exposure to elevated [O 3 ] (~100 nl L -1 ) in the field. Gas exchange was measured on the leaf subtending the ear throughout the grain filling period. On average over the lifetime of the leaf, elevated [O 3 ] led to reductions in photosynthetic CO 2 assimilation of both inbred (-22%) and hybrid (-33%) genotypes. There was significant variation among both inbred and hybrid lines in the sensitivity of photosynthesis to elevated [O 3 ], with some lines showing no change in photosynthesis at elevated [O 3 ]. Based on analysis of inbred line B73, the reduced CO 2 assimilation at elevated [O 3 ] was associated with accelerated senescence decreasing photosynthetic capacity and not altered stomatal limitation. These findings across diverse maize genotypes could advance the development of more O 3 tolerant maize and provide experimental data for parameterization and validation of studies modeling how O 3 impacts crop performance. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Lead poisoning in United States-bound refugee children: Thailand-Burma border, 2009.

PubMed

Mitchell, Tarissa; Jentes, Emily; Ortega, Luis; Scalia Sucosky, Marissa; Jefferies, Taran; Bajcevic, Predrag; Parr, Valentina; Jones, Warren; Brown, Mary Jean; Painter, John

2012-02-01

Elevated blood lead levels lead to permanent neurocognitive sequelae in children. Resettled refugee children in the United States are considered at high risk for elevated blood lead levels, but the prevalence of and risk factors for elevated blood lead levels before resettlement have not been described. Blood samples from children aged 6 months to 14 years from refugee camps in Thailand were tested for lead and hemoglobin. Sixty-seven children with elevated blood lead levels (venous ≥10 µg/dL) or undetectable (capillary <3.3 µg/dL) blood lead levels participated in a case-control study. Of 642 children, 33 (5.1%) had elevated blood lead levels. Children aged <2 years had the highest prevalence (14.5%). Among children aged <2 years included in a case-control study, elevated blood lead levels risk factors included hemoglobin <10 g/dL, exposure to car batteries, and taking traditional medicines. The prevalence of elevated blood lead levels among tested US-bound Burmese refugee children was higher than the current US prevalence, and was especially high among children <2 years old. Refugee children may arrive in the United States with elevated blood lead levels. A population-specific understanding of preexisting lead exposures can enhance postarrival lead-poisoning prevention efforts, based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations for resettled refugee children, and can lead to remediation efforts overseas.

Adult exposure to ocean acidification is maladaptive for larvae of the Sydney rock oyster Saccostrea glomerata in the presence of multiple stressors.

PubMed

Parker, Laura M; O'Connor, Wayne A; Byrne, Maria; Coleman, Ross A; Virtue, Patti; Dove, Michael; Gibbs, Mitchell; Spohr, Lorraine; Scanes, Elliot; Ross, Pauline M

2017-02-01

Parental effects passed from adults to their offspring have been identified as a source of rapid acclimation that may allow marine populations to persist as our surface oceans continue to decrease in pH. Little is known, however, whether parental effects are beneficial for offspring in the presence of multiple stressors. We exposed adults of the oyster Saccostrea glomerata to elevated CO 2 and examined the impacts of elevated CO 2 (control = 392; 856 µatm) combined with elevated temperature (control = 24; 28°C), reduced salinity (control = 35; 25) and reduced food concentration (control = full; half diet) on their larvae. Adult exposure to elevated CO 2 had a positive impact on larvae reared at elevated CO 2 as a sole stressor, which were 8% larger and developed faster at elevated CO 2 compared with larvae from adults exposed to ambient CO 2 These larvae, however, had significantly reduced survival in all multistressor treatments. This was particularly evident for larvae reared at elevated CO 2 combined with elevated temperature or reduced food concentration, with no larvae surviving in some treatment combinations. Larvae from CO 2 -exposed adults had a higher standard metabolic rate. Our results provide evidence that parental exposure to ocean acidification may be maladaptive when larvae experience multiple stressors. © 2017 The Author(s).

Adult exposure to ocean acidification is maladaptive for larvae of the Sydney rock oyster Saccostrea glomerata in the presence of multiple stressors

PubMed Central

O'Connor, Wayne A.; Byrne, Maria; Virtue, Patti; Dove, Michael; Gibbs, Mitchell; Spohr, Lorraine; Scanes, Elliot; Ross, Pauline M.

2017-01-01

Parental effects passed from adults to their offspring have been identified as a source of rapid acclimation that may allow marine populations to persist as our surface oceans continue to decrease in pH. Little is known, however, whether parental effects are beneficial for offspring in the presence of multiple stressors. We exposed adults of the oyster Saccostrea glomerata to elevated CO2 and examined the impacts of elevated CO2 (control = 392; 856 µatm) combined with elevated temperature (control = 24; 28°C), reduced salinity (control = 35; 25) and reduced food concentration (control = full; half diet) on their larvae. Adult exposure to elevated CO2 had a positive impact on larvae reared at elevated CO2 as a sole stressor, which were 8% larger and developed faster at elevated CO2 compared with larvae from adults exposed to ambient CO2. These larvae, however, had significantly reduced survival in all multistressor treatments. This was particularly evident for larvae reared at elevated CO2 combined with elevated temperature or reduced food concentration, with no larvae surviving in some treatment combinations. Larvae from CO2-exposed adults had a higher standard metabolic rate. Our results provide evidence that parental exposure to ocean acidification may be maladaptive when larvae experience multiple stressors. PMID:28202683

Effects of elevated CO2 levels on root morphological traits and Cd uptakes of two Lolium species under Cd stress*

PubMed Central

Jia, Yan; Tang, Shi-rong; Ju, Xue-hai; Shu, Li-na; Tu, Shu-xing; Feng, Ren-wei; Giusti, Lorenzino

2011-01-01

This study was conducted to investigate the combined effects of elevated CO2 levels and cadmium (Cd) on the root morphological traits and Cd accumulation in Lolium multiflorum Lam. and Lolium perenne L. exposed to two CO2 levels (360 and 1000 μl/L) and three Cd levels (0, 4, and 16 mg/L) under hydroponic conditions. The results show that elevated levels of CO2 increased shoot biomass more, compared to root biomass, but decreased Cd concentrations in all plant tissues. Cd exposure caused toxicity to both Lolium species, as shown by the restrictions of the root morphological parameters including root length, surface area, volume, and tip numbers. These parameters were significantly higher under elevated levels of CO2 than under ambient CO2, especially for the number of fine roots. The increases in magnitudes of those parameters triggered by elevated levels of CO2 under Cd stress were more than those under non-Cd stress, suggesting an ameliorated Cd stress under elevated levels of CO2. The total Cd uptake per pot, calculated on the basis of biomass, was significantly greater under elevated levels of CO2 than under ambient CO2. Ameliorated Cd toxicity, decreased Cd concentration, and altered root morphological traits in both Lolium species under elevated levels of CO2 may have implications in food safety and phytoremediation. PMID:21462388

Surviving at high elevations: an inter- and intra-specific analysis in a mountain bird community.

PubMed

Bastianelli, G; Tavecchia, G; Meléndez, L; Seoane, J; Obeso, J R; Laiolo, P

2017-06-01

Elevation represents an important selection agent on self-maintenance traits and correlated life histories in birds, but no study has analysed whether life-history variation along this environmental cline is consistent among and within species. In a sympatric community of passerines, we analysed how the average adult survival of 25 open-habitat species varied with their elevational distribution and how adult survival varied with elevation at the intra-specific level. For such purpose, we estimated intra-specific variation in adult survival in two mountainous species, the Water pipit (Anthus spinoletta) and the Northern wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) in NW Spain, by means of capture-recapture analyses. At the inter-specific level, high-elevation species showed higher survival values than low elevation ones, likely because a greater allocation to self-maintenance permits species to persist in alpine environments. At the intra-specific level, the magnitude of survival variation was lower by far. Nevertheless, Water pipit survival slightly decreased at high elevations, while the proportion of transient birds increased. In contrast, no such relationships were found in the Northern wheatear. Intra-specific analyses suggest that living at high elevation may be costly, such as for the Water pipit in our case study. Therefore, it seems that a species can persist with viable populations in uplands, where extrinsic mortality is high, by increasing the investment in self-maintenance and prospecting behaviours.

Factors associated with elevated plateau pressure in patients with acute lung injury receiving lower tidal volume ventilation.

PubMed

Prescott, Hallie C; Brower, Roy G; Cooke, Colin R; Phillips, Gary; O'Brien, James M

2013-03-01

Lung-protective ventilation with lower tidal volume and lower plateau pressure improves mortality in patients with acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome. We sought to determine the incidence of elevated plateau pressure in acute lung injury /acute respiratory distress syndrome patients receiving lower tidal volume ventilation and to determine the factors that predict elevated plateau pressure in these patients. We used data from 1398 participants in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network trials, who received lower tidal volume ventilation (≤ 6.5mL/kg predicted body weight). We considered patients with a plateau pressure greater than 30cm H2O and/or a tidal volume less than 5.5mL/kg predicted body weight on study day 1 to have "elevated plateau pressure." We used logistic regression to identify baseline clinical variables associated with elevated plateau pressure and to develop a model to predict elevated plateau pressure using a subset of 1,188 patients. We validated the model in the 210 patients not used for model development. Medical centers participating in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network clinical trials. None. Of the 1,398 patients in our study, 288 (20.6%) had elevated plateau pressure on day 1. Severity of illness indices and demographic factors (younger age, greater body mass index, and non-white race) were independently associated with elevated plateau pressure. The multivariable logistic regression model for predicting elevated plateau pressure had an area under the receiving operator characteristic curve of 0.71 for both the developmental and the validation subsets. acute lung injury patients receiving lower tidal volume ventilation often have a plateau pressure that exceeds Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network goals. Race, body mass index, and severity of lung injury are each independently associated with elevated plateau pressure. Selecting a smaller initial tidal volume for non-white patients and patients with higher severity of illness may decrease the incidence of elevated plateau pressure. Prospective studies are needed to evaluate this approach.

Association of Preoperative and Postoperative Serum Carcinoembryonic Antigen and Colon Cancer Outcome.

PubMed

Konishi, Tsuyoshi; Shimada, Yoshifumi; Hsu, Meier; Tufts, Lauren; Jimenez-Rodriguez, Rosa; Cercek, Andrea; Yaeger, Rona; Saltz, Leonard; Smith, J Joshua; Nash, Garrett M; Guillem, José G; Paty, Philip B; Garcia-Aguilar, Julio; Gonen, Mithat; Weiser, Martin R

2018-03-01

Guidelines recommend measuring preoperative carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in patients with colon cancer. Although persistently elevated CEA after surgery has been associated with increased risk for metastatic disease, prognostic significance of elevated preoperative CEA that normalized after resection is unknown. To investigate whether patients with elevated preoperative CEA that normalizes after colon cancer resection have a higher risk of recurrence than patients with normal preoperative CEA. This retrospective cohort analysis was conducted at a comprehensive cancer center. Consecutive patients with colon cancer who underwent curative resection for stage I to III colon adenocarcinoma at the center from January 2007 to December 2014 were identified. Patients were grouped into 3 cohorts: normal preoperative CEA, elevated preoperative but normalized postoperative CEA, and elevated preoperative and postoperative CEA. Three-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) and hazard function curves over time were analyzed. A total of 1027 patients (461 [50.4%] male; median [IQR] age, 64 [53-75] years) were identified. Patients with normal preoperative CEA had 7.4% higher 3-year RFS (n = 715 [89.7%]) than the combined cohorts with elevated preoperative CEA (n = 312 [82.3%]) (P = .01) but had RFS similar to that of patients with normalized postoperative CEA (n = 142 [87.9%]) (P = .86). Patients with elevated postoperative CEA had 14.9% lower RFS (n = 57 [74.5%]) than the combined cohorts with normal postoperative CEA (n = 857 [89.4%]) (P = .001). The hazard function of recurrence for elevated postoperative CEA peaked earlier than for the other cohorts. Multivariate analyses confirmed that elevated postoperative CEA (hazard ratio [HR], 2.0; 95% CI, 1.1-3.5), but not normalized postoperative CEA (HR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.45-1.30), was independently associated with shorter RFS. Elevated preoperative CEA that normalizes after resection is not an indicator of poor prognosis. Routine measurement of postoperative, rather than preoperative, CEA is warranted. Patients with elevated postoperative CEA are at increased risk for recurrence, especially within the first 12 months after surgery.

Seasonal and Interannual Variations of Ice Sheet Surface Elevation at the Summit of Greenland: Observed and Modeled

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. Jay; Jun, Li; Koblinsky, Chester J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Observed seasonal and interannual variations in the surface elevation over the summit of the Greenland ice sheet are modeled using a new temperature-dependent formulation of firn-densification and observed accumulation variations. The observed elevation variations are derived from ERS (European Remote Sensing)-1 and ERS-2 radar altimeter data for the period between April 1992 and April 1999. A multivariate linear/sine function is fitted to an elevation time series constructed from elevation differences measured by radar altimetry at orbital crossovers. The amplitude of the seasonal elevation cycle is 0.25 m peak-to-peak, with a maximum in winter and a minimum in summer. Inter-annually, the elevation decreases to a minimum in 1995, followed by an increase to 1999, with an overall average increase of 4.2 cm a(exp -1) for 1992 to 1999. Our densification formulation uses an initial field-density profile, the AWS (automatic weather station) surface temperature record, and a temperature-dependent constitutive relation for the densification that is based on laboratory measurements of crystal growth rates. The rate constant and the activation energy commonly used in the Arrhenius-type constitutive relation for firn densification are also temperature dependent, giving a stronger temperature and seasonal amplitudes about 10 times greater than previous densification formulations. Summer temperatures are most important, because of the strong non-linear dependence on temperature. Much of firn densification and consequent surface lowering occurs within about three months of the summer season, followed by a surface build-up from snow accumulation until spring. Modeled interannual changes of the surface elevation, using the AWS measurements of surface temperature and accumulation and results of atmospheric modeling of precipitation variations, are in good agreement with the altimeter observations. In the model, the surface elevation decreases about 20 cm over the seven years due to more compaction driven by increasing summer temperatures. The minimum elevation in 1995 is driven mainly by a temporary accumulation decrease and secondarily by warmer temperatures. However, the overall elevation increase over the seven years is dominated by the accumulation increase in the later years.

Spatial patterns of plant litter in a tidal freshwater marsh and implications for marsh persistence.

PubMed

Elmore, Andrew J; Engelhardt, Katharina A M; Cadol, Daniel; Palinkas, Cindy M

2016-04-01

The maintenance of marsh platform elevation under conditions of sea level rise is dependent on mineral sediment supply to marsh surfaces and conversion of above- and belowground plant biomass to soil organic material. These physical and biological processes interact within the tidal zone, resulting in elevation-dependent processes contributing to marsh accretion. Here, we explore spatial pattern in a variable related to aboveground biomass, plant litter, to reveal its role in the maintenance of marsh surfaces. Plant litter persisting through the dormant season represents the more recalcitrant portion of plant biomass, and as such has an extended period of influence on ecosystem processes. We conducted a field and remote sensing analysis of plant litter height, aboveground biomass, vertical cover, and stem density (collectively termed plant litter structure) at a tidal freshwater marsh located within the Potomac River estuary, USA. LiDAR and field observations show that plant litter structure becomes more prominent with increasing elevation. Spatial patterns in litter structure exhibit stability from year to year and correlate with patterns in soil organic matter content, revealed by measuring the loss on ignition of surface sediments. The amount of mineral material embedded within plant litter decreases with increasing elevation, representing an important tradeoff with litter structure. Therefore, at low elevations where litter structure is short and sparse, the role of plant litter is to capture sediment; at high elevations where litter structure is tall and dense, aboveground litter contributes organic matter to soil development. This organic matter contribution has the potential to eclipse that of belowground biomass as the root:shoot ratio of dominant species at high elevations is low compared to that of dominant species at low elevations. Because of these tradeoffs in mineral and organic matter incorporation into soil across elevation gradients, the rate of marsh surface elevation change is remarkably consistent across elevation. Because of the role of plant litter in marsh ecosystem processes, monitoring and assessment of these dynamic geomorphic marsh landscapes might be streamlined through the measurement of plant litter structure, either via LiDAR technologies or field observation.

Association of Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Elevated Blood Pressure Despite Antihypertensive Medication Use

PubMed Central

Walia, Harneet K.; Li, Hong; Rueschman, Michael; Bhatt, Deepak L.; Patel, Sanjay R.; Quan, Stuart F.; Gottlieb, Daniel J.; Punjabi, Naresh M.; Redline, Susan; Mehra, Reena

2014-01-01

Rationale: We hypothesized that untreated severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with elevated ambulatory blood pressure (BP) in subjects with high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk despite medical management. Methods: Data from the baseline examination of the Heart Biomarker Evaluation in Apnea Treatment (HeartBEAT) study, a 4-site randomized controlled trial were analyzed. Individuals with moderate-severe OSA (apnea hypopnea index, AHI = 15-50) and cardiovascular risk were recruited from cardiology practices. Those with hypertension were included. Intensive antihypertensive regimen (IAR) was defined as ≥ 3 antihypertensives including a diuretic. Definitions were: controlled BP (BP < 130/80), uncontrolled elevated BP (BP ≥ 130/80 not on IAR) and resistant elevated BP (BP ≥ 130/80 mm Hg despite IAR). Associations of untreated severe OSA (AHI ≥ 30) and uncontrolled and resistant elevated BP were evaluated using logistic regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, race, body mass index, smoking status, diabetes, and CVD. Results: Among the 284 participants (mean age 63.1 ± 7.2 years, 23.6% with severe OSA), 61.6% had controlled BP, 28.5% had uncontrolled elevated BP, and 9.9% had resistant elevated BP. Among participants prescribed IAR, resistant elevated BP was more prevalent in those with severe compared to moderate OSA (58.3% vs. 28.6%, p = 0.01). Participants with severe OSA had a 4-fold higher adjusted odds of resistant elevated BP (OR 4.1, 95% CI: 1.7-10.2), a finding not reproduced in the absence of IAR use. Conclusions: Among patients with increased cardiovascular risk and moderate to severe OSA, untreated severe compared to moderate OSA was associated with elevated BP despite IAR suggesting untreated severe OSA contributes to poor BP control despite aggressive medication use. Commentary: A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 845. Citation: Walia HK, Li H, Rueschman M, Bhatt DL, Patel SR, Quan SF, Gottlieb DJ, Punjabi NM, Redline S, Mehra R. Association of severe obstructive sleep apnea and elevated blood pressure despite antihypertensive medication use. J Clin Sleep Med 2014;10(8):835-843. PMID:25126027

Avian malaria in Hawaiian forest birds: Infection and population impacts across species and elevations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Samuel, Michael D.; Woodworth, Bethany L.; Atkinson, Carter T.; Hart, P. J.; LaPointe, Dennis

2015-01-01

Wildlife diseases can present significant threats to ecological systems and biological diversity, as well as domestic animal and human health. However, determining the dynamics of wildlife diseases and understanding the impact on host populations is a significant challenge. In Hawai‘i, there is ample circumstantial evidence that introduced avian malaria (Plasmodium relictum) has played an important role in the decline and extinction of many native forest birds. However, few studies have attempted to estimate disease transmission and mortality, survival, and individual species impacts in this distinctive ecosystem. We combined multi-state capture-recapture (longitudinal) models with cumulative age-prevalence (cross-sectional) models to evaluate these patterns in Apapane, Hawai‘i Amakihi, and Iiwi in low-, mid-, and high-elevation forests on the island of Hawai‘i based on four longitudinal studies of 3–7 years in length. We found species-specific patterns of malaria prevalence, transmission, and mortality rates that varied among elevations, likely in response to ecological factors that drive mosquito abundance. Malaria infection was highest at low elevations, moderate at mid elevations, and limited in high-elevation forests. Infection rates were highest for Iiwi and Apapane, likely contributing to the absence of these species in low-elevation forests. Adult malaria fatality rates were highest for Iiwi, intermediate for Amakihi at mid and high elevations, and lower for Apapane; low-elevation Amakihi had the lowest malaria fatality, providing strong evidence of malaria tolerance in this low-elevation population. Our study indicates that hatch-year birds may have greater malaria infection and/or fatality rates than adults. Our study also found that mosquitoes prefer feeding on Amakihi rather than Apapane, but Apapane are likely a more important reservoir for malaria transmission to mosquitoes. Our approach, based on host abundance and infection rates, may be an effective alternative to mosquito blood meal analysis for determining vector-host contacts when mosquito densities are low and collection of blood-fed mosquitoes is impractical. Our study supports the hypothesis that avian malaria has been a primary factor influencing the elevational distribution and abundance of these three species, and likely limits other native Hawaiian species that are susceptible to malaria.

Proprioceptive input patterns elevator activity in the locust flight system.

PubMed

Wolf, H; Pearson, K G

1988-06-01

1. In the locust, Locusta migratoria, the roles of two groups of wing sense organs, hind wing tegulae and wing-hinge stretch receptors, in the generation of the flight motor pattern were investigated. A preparation was employed that allowed the intracellular recording of neural activity in almost intact tethered flying locusts or after selective manipulations of sensory input. The functions of the two sets of receptors were assessed 1) by studying the phases of their discharges in the wingbeat cycle (Fig. 3), 2) by the selective ablation of input from the receptors (Figs. 4-7), and 3) by the selective stimulation of the receptor afferents (Figs. 8-12). 2. Input from the tegulae was found to be responsible for the initiation of elevator activity (Figs. 9 and 10) and for the generation of a distinct initial rapid depolarization (Figs. 4, 5, and 8) characteristic of elevator motor neuron activity in intact locusts (Figs. 1 and 16). 3. Input from the wing-hinge stretch receptors was found to control the duration of elevator depolarizations by the graded suppression of a second late component of the elevator depolarizations as wingbeat frequency increased (Figs. 6, 7, 11, and 12). The characteristics of this late component of elevator activity suggested that it is generated by the same (central nervous) mechanism that produces the elevator depolarizations recorded in deafferented animals (Fig. 2). Apparently this late component contributes to the intact pattern of elevator depolarizations only at lower wingbeat frequencies and is abolished by the action of stretch-receptor input at frequencies above approximately 15 Hz (Figs. 1, 2, and 4). At these high wingbeat frequencies elevator activity is dominated by the rapid depolarizations generated as a result of tegula input. 4. The present study demonstrates 1) that the timing of elevator motor neuron activity is determined by phasic afferent input from tegulae and stretch receptors and 2) that input from the stretch receptors controls the duration of elevator activity in the wingbeat cycle following the wing movement that was responsible for the generation of the receptor discharge.

Rotigotine's effect on PLM-associated blood pressure elevations in restless legs syndrome

PubMed Central

Cassel, Werner; Benes, Heike; Kesper, Karl; Rye, David; Sica, Domenic; Winkelman, John W.; Bauer, Lars; Grieger, Frank; Joeres, Lars; Moran, Kimberly; Schollmayer, Erwin; Whitesides, John; Carney, Hannah C.; Walters, Arthur S.; Oertel, Wolfgang; Trenkwalder, Claudia

2016-01-01

Objective: This double-blind, placebo-controlled, interventional trial was conducted to investigate the effects of rotigotine patch on periodic limb movement (PLM)–associated nocturnal systolic blood pressure (SBP) elevations. Methods: Patients with moderate to severe restless legs syndrome (RLS) were randomized to rotigotine (optimal dose [1–3 mg/24 h]) or placebo. Continuous beat-to-beat blood pressure (BP) assessments were performed during polysomnography at baseline and at the end of 4-week maintenance. Primary outcome was change in number of PLM-associated SBP elevations (defined as slope of linear regression ≥2.5 mm Hg/beat-to-beat interval over 5 consecutive heartbeats [≥10 mm Hg]). Additional outcomes were total SBP elevations, PLM-associated and total diastolic BP (DBP) elevations, periodic limb movements index (PLMI), and PLM in sleep arousal index (PLMSAI). Results: Of 81 randomized patients, 66 (37 rotigotine, 29 placebo) were included in efficacy assessments. PLM-associated SBP elevations were significantly reduced with rotigotine vs placebo (least squares mean treatment difference [95% confidence interval (CI)] −160.34 [−213.23 to −107.45]; p < 0.0001). Rotigotine-treated patients also had greater reduction vs placebo in total SBP elevations (−161.13 [−264.47 to −57.79]; p = 0.0028), PLM-associated elevations (−88.45 [−126.12 to −50.78]; p < 0.0001), and total DBP elevations (−93.81 [−168.45 to −19.16]; p = 0.0146), PLMI (−32.77 [−44.73 to −20.80]; p < 0.0001), and PLMSAI (−7.10 [−11.93 to −2.26]; p = 0.0047). Adverse events included nausea (rotigotine 23%; placebo 8%), headache (18% each), nasopharyngitis (18%; 8%), and fatigue (13%; 15%). Conclusions: Further investigation is required to determine whether reductions in nocturnal BP elevations observed with rotigotine might modify cardiovascular risk. Classification of evidence: This study provides Class I evidence that for patients with moderate to severe RLS, rotigotine at optimal dose (1–3 mg/24 h) reduced PLM-associated nocturnal SBP elevations. PMID:27164714

FDTD analysis of human body-core temperature elevation due to RF far-field energy prescribed in the ICNIRP guidelines.

PubMed

Hirata, Akimasa; Asano, Takayuki; Fujiwara, Osamu

2007-08-21

This study investigated the relationship between the specific absorption rate and temperature elevation in an anatomically-based model named NORMAN for exposure to radio-frequency far fields in the ICNIRP guidelines (1998 Health Phys. 74 494-522). The finite-difference time-domain method is used for analyzing the electromagnetic absorption and temperature elevation in NORMAN. In order to consider the variability of human thermoregulation, parameters for sweating are derived and incorporated into a conventional sweating formula. First, we investigated the effect of blood temperature variation modeling on body-core temperature. The computational results show that the modeling of blood temperature variation was the dominant factor influencing the body-core temperature. This is because the temperature in the inner tissues is elevated via the circulation of blood whose temperature was elevated due to EM absorption. Even at different frequencies, the body-core temperature elevation at an identical whole-body average specific absorption rate (SAR) was almost the same, suggesting the effectiveness of the whole-body average SAR as a measure in the ICNIRP guidelines. Next, we discussed the effect of sweating on the temperature elevation and thermal time constant of blood. The variability of temperature elevation caused by the sweating rate was found to be 30%. The blood temperature elevation at the basic restriction in the ICNIRP guidelines of 0.4 W kg(-1) is 0.25 degrees C even for a low sweating rate. The thermal time constant of blood temperature elevation was 23 min and 52 min for a man with a lower and a higher sweating rate, respectively, which is longer than the average time of the SAR in the ICNIRP guidelines. Thus, the whole-body average SAR required for blood temperature elevation of 1 degrees C was 4.5 W kg(-1) in the model of a human with the lower sweating coefficients for 60 min exposure. From a comparison of this value with the basic restriction in the ICNIRP guidelines of 0.4 W kg(-1), the safety factor was 11.

77 FR 15664 - Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-16

... table provided here represents the flooding sources, location of referenced elevations, and effective and modified elevations for the City of Cadiz, Kentucky. Specifically, it addresses the flooding... Cadiz, Kentucky'' addressed the flooding sources Little River (backwater effects from Lake Barkley) and...

29 CFR 780.708 - A country elevator is located near and serves farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... or pledged to the Government under a price-support program. Country elevators customarily receive.... Kan.) 14 WH Cases 269; Tobin v. Flour Mills, 185 F. 2d 596; Holt v. Barnesville Elevator Co., 145 F...

2. BRICK END ELEVATION WITH X VENTILATORS, REDPAINTED GABLE WITH ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. BRICK END ELEVATION WITH X VENTILATORS, RED-PAINTED GABLE WITH WHITE STARS AND A DOORWAY HOOD. ALSO SHOWS PORTION OF REAR ELEVATION WITH X VENTILATORS - Decorated Red Barn (1852), State Route 100 vicinity, Pottstown, Montgomery County, PA

Noise Prediction Models for Elevated Rail Transit Structures

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1975-08-01

The report presents the theoretical development of a model for the prediction of noise radiated by elevated structures on rail transit lines. In particular it deals with noise and vibration control for urban rail transit track and elevated noise and ...

1. View to south showing facade (northeast elevation) and northwest ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. View to south showing facade (northeast elevation) and northwest elevation, with Carpenter & Paint Shop (HABS No. VA-1287-L) at left - Portsmouth Naval Hospital, Medical Storage Building, South corner of The Circle & Barton Avenue, Portsmouth, Portsmouth, VA

Clinical and Economic Burden of Elevated Blood Eosinophils in Patients With and Without Uncontrolled Asthma.

PubMed

Casciano, Julian; Krishnan, Jerry; Dotiwala, Zenobia; Li, Chenghui; Sun, Shawn X

2017-01-01

The European Respiratory Society and American Thoracic Society (ERS/ATS) published guidelines in 2014 for the evaluation and treatment of asthma. These guidelines draw attention to management of patients with asthma that remains uncontrolled despite therapy. One phenotypic characteristic of therapy-resistant asthma is eosinophil elevation. It is important to better understand the burden of care gaps in this patient subgroup in order to support improved treatment strategies in the future. To quantify the economic burden of asthma patients with and without peripheral blood eosinophil elevation. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from patients aged 12 years or older with a diagnosis of asthma using electronic health records of over 2 million patients between 2004-2010. Patients with a diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Churg Strauss syndrome/Wegener's granulomatosis, eosinophilia, cystic/pulmonary fibrosis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, or lung cancer in the 12-month period before the date of asthma diagnosis were excluded. Patients with asthma were followed for 12 months after their initial asthma diagnosis to identify those with controlled versus uncontrolled asthma based on ERS/ATS criteria. Patients with at least 1 peripheral blood eosinophil test result of ≥ 400 cells/µL were classified as those with elevated eosinophils. Total annual paid-claim cost was compared by eosinophil levels within the controlled and uncontrolled asthma subgroups. Costs were adjusted to 2015 U.S. dollars. Patients were stratified by control level, and generalized linear modeling regressions were used to assess the magnitude of increase in cost of the elevated eosinophil group. A total of 2,701 patients were included in the study, of which 17% had uncontrolled asthma and 21% had elevated eosinophils. The mean total annual cost of patients with uncontrolled asthma was more than 2 times the cost of those with controlled asthma ($18,341 vs. $8,670, P < 0.001). Patients with uncontrolled asthma in the elevated eosinophil group had almost double the total cost ($28,644 vs. $14,188, P = 0.008) compared with those with blood eosinophil levels in a normal range. Similarly, patients classified as those with controlled asthma in the elevated eosinophil group had almost twice the average costs as those without elevated eosinophils ($14,754 vs. $7,203, P < 0.001). Uncontrolled asthma with elevated eosinophils had 4 times greater hospital admissions and over 4 times higher total costs than controlled asthma without elevated eosinophils. Among patients with uncontrolled asthma, patients with elevated eosinophils had a 53% increase in mean cost ($17,723 vs. $11,581, P < 0.001) compared with patients without elevated eosinophils. Among patients with controlled asthma, patients with elevated eosinophils had a 62% increase in mean cost ($8,897 vs. $5,486, P < 0.001) compared with patients without elevated eosinophils. Elevated peripheral blood eosinophil level is associated with higher cost irrespective of disease control status. This study was funded by Teva Pharmaceuticals. Dotiwala and Casciano report consulting and writing fees from Teva Pharmaceuticals for work on this study. Sun is an employee and stockholder of Teva Pharmaceuticals. Li reports consulting fees from eMAX Health. All authors contributed to study design. Dotiwala took the lead in data collection, along with the other authors, and data interpretation was performed primarily by Krishnan, Sun, and Li, along with Casciano and Dotiwala. The manuscript was written by Casciano, Dotiwala, and Li, along with Sun and Krishnan, and revised by Casciano, Dotiwala, Sun, and Li, with assistance from Krishnan.

Building Daily 30-meter Spatial Resolution Maps of Surface Water Bodies from MODIS Data Using a Novel Technique for Transferring Information Across Space and Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khandelwal, A.; Karpatne, A.; Kumar, V.

2017-12-01

In this paper, we present novel methods for producing surface water maps at 30 meter spatial resolution at a daily temporal resolution. These new methods will make use of the MODIS spectral data from Terra (available daily since 2000) to produce daily maps at 250 meter and 500 meter resolution, and then refine them using the relative elevation ordering of pixels at 30 meter resolution. The key component of these methods is the use of elevation structure (relative elevation ordering) of a water body. Elevation structure is not explicitly available at desired resolution for most water bodies in the world and hence it will be estimated using our previous work that uses the history of imperfect labels. In this paper, we will present a new technique that uses elevation structure (unlike existing pixel based methods) to enforce temporal consistency in surface water extents (lake area on nearby dates is likely to be very similar). This will greatly improve the quality of the MODIS scale land/water labels since daily MODIS data can have a large amount of missing (or poor quality) data due to clouds and other factors. The quality of these maps will be further improved using elevation based resolution refinement approach that will make use of elevation structure estimated at Landsat scale. With the assumption that elevation structure does not change over time, it provides a very effective way to transfer information between datasets even when they are not observed concurrently. In this work, we will derive elevation structure at Landsat scale from monthly water extent maps spanning 1984-2015, publicly available through a joint effort of Google Earth Engine and the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC). This elevation structure will then be used to refine spatial resolution of Modis scale maps from 2000 onwards. We will present the analysis of these methods on a large and diverse set of water bodies across the world.

Effect of elevated CO2 on phosphorus nutrition of phosphate-deficient Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh under different nitrogen forms

PubMed Central

Niu, Yaofang; Chai, Rushan; Zhang, Yongsong

2013-01-01

Phosphorus (P) nutrition is always a key issue regarding plants responses to elevated CO2. Yet it is unclear of how elevated CO2 affects P uptake under different nitrogen (N) forms. This study investigated the influence of elevated CO2 (800 µl l–1) on P uptake and utilization by Arabidopsis grown in pH-buffered phosphate (P)-deficient (0.5 µM) hydroponic culture supplying with 2mM nitrate (NO3 −) or ammonium (NH4 +). After 7 d treatment, elevated CO2 enhanced the biomass production of both NO3 −- and NH4 +-fed plants but decreased the P amount absorbed per weight of roots and the P concentration in the shoots of plants supplied with NH4 +. In comparison, elevated CO2 increased the amount of P absorbed per weight of roots, as well as the P concentration in plants and alleviated P deficiency-induced symptoms of plants supplied with NO3 −. Elevated CO2 also increased the root/shoot ratio, total root surface area, and acid phosphatase activity, and enhanced the expression of genes or transcriptional factors involving in P uptake, allocation and remobilization in P deficient plants. Furthermore, elevated CO2 increased the nitric oxide (NO) level in roots of NO3 −-fed plants but decreased it in NH4 +-fed plants. NO scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (cPTIO) inhibited plant P acquisition by roots under elevated CO2. Considering all of these findings, this study concluded that a combination of elevated CO2 and NO3 − nutrition can induce a set of plant adaptive strategies to improve P status from P-deficient soluble sources and that NO may be a signalling molecule that controls these processes. PMID:23183255

Postoperative elevation in creatine kinase and its impact on renal function in patients undergoing complex partial nephrectomy.

PubMed

Sidana, Abhinav; Walton-Diaz, Annerleim; Truong, Hong; Siddiqui, M Minhaj; Miao, Ning; Shih, Johanna; Mannes, Andrew; Bratslavsky, Gennady; Linehan, W Marston; Metwalli, Adam R

2016-07-01

To identify the risk factors associated with development of postoperative elevation of creatine kinase (CK) and study its effect on renal function in patients who underwent complex multifocal partial nephrectomy (PN). Patients who underwent PN at National Cancer Institute between January 2007 and December 2012 were included in the study. Elevated serum CK was defined as >2000 U/L. Kidney function was assessed using serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). Changes were reported as percent change from preoperative values and compared using the Wilcoxon test. Regression analysis was performed to identify the predictors of elevation in CK and decline in eGFR. From 407 total cases, 207 had adequate CK data for analysis. Median number of tumors removed was 3 (1-70). Median peak CK was 1458 (82-36,788). Forty-two percent developed CK elevation >2000 U/L. Factors associated with postoperative elevation of CK > 2000 were young age (p = 0.009), high BMI (p = 0.003) and operating room time (p < 0.001). Although CK > 2000 was associated with significantly greater decline in eGFR (37.4 vs. 20.3 %, p < 0.001) in immediate postoperative period, this change largely resolved to a much less clinically relevant (9.2 vs 3.3 %, p = 0.040) change after 3 months. On multivariate analysis, postoperative elevation in CK was not found to be an independent factor determining renal function at 3 months. In our cohort, a significant proportion of patients developed CK elevations >2000 U/L. While patients with elevated CK had more decline in eGFR in immediate postoperative period, postoperative elevations of CK did not appear to impact overall long-term renal function in patients undergoing PN.

Elevated CO2 increases glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) in the rhizosphere of Robinia pseudoacacia L. seedlings in Pb- and Cd-contaminated soils.

PubMed

Jia, Xia; Zhao, Yonghua; Liu, Tuo; Huang, Shuping; Chang, Yafei

2016-11-01

Glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP), which contains glycoproteins produced by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), as well as non-mycorrhizal-related heat-stable proteins, lipids, and humic materials, is generally categorized into two fractions: easily extractable GRSP (EE-GRSP) and total GRSP (T-GRSP). GRSP plays an important role in soil carbon (C) sequestration and can stabilize heavy metals such as lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and manganese (Mn). Soil contamination by heavy metals is occurring in conjunction with rising atmospheric CO 2 in natural ecosystems due to human activities. However, the response of GRSP to elevated CO 2 combined with heavy metal contamination has not been widely reported. Here, we investigated the response of GRSP to elevated CO 2 in the rhizosphere of Robinia pseudoacacia L. seedlings in Pb- and Cd-contaminated soils. Elevated CO 2 (700 μmol mol -1 ) significantly increased T- and EE- GRSP concentrations in soils contaminated with Cd, Pb or Cd + Pb. GRSP contributed more carbon to the rhizosphere soil organic carbon pool under elevated CO 2  + heavy metals than under ambient CO 2 . The amount of Cd and Pb bound to GRSP was significantly higher under elevated (compared to ambient) CO 2 ; and elevated CO 2 increased the ratio of GRSP-bound Cd and Pb to total Cd and Pb. However, available Cd and Pb in rhizosphere soil under increased elevated CO 2 compared to ambient CO 2 . The combination of both metals and elevated CO 2 led to a significant increase in available Pb in rhizosphere soil compared to the Pb treatment alone. In conclusion, increased GRSP produced under elevated CO 2 could contribute to sequestration of soil pollutants by adsorption of Cd and Pb. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elevated Temperature and CO2 Stimulate Late-Season Photosynthesis But Impair Cold Hardening in Pine.

PubMed

Chang, Christine Y; Fréchette, Emmanuelle; Unda, Faride; Mansfield, Shawn D; Ensminger, Ingo

2016-10-01

Rising global temperature and CO 2 levels may sustain late-season net photosynthesis of evergreen conifers but could also impair the development of cold hardiness. Our study investigated how elevated temperature, and the combination of elevated temperature with elevated CO 2 , affected photosynthetic rates, leaf carbohydrates, freezing tolerance, and proteins involved in photosynthesis and cold hardening in Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus). We designed an experiment where control seedlings were acclimated to long photoperiod (day/night 14/10 h), warm temperature (22°C/15°C), and either ambient (400 μL L -1 ) or elevated (800 μmol mol -1 ) CO 2 , and then shifted seedlings to growth conditions with short photoperiod (8/16 h) and low temperature/ambient CO 2 (LTAC), elevated temperature/ambient CO 2 (ETAC), or elevated temperature/elevated CO 2 (ETEC). Exposure to LTAC induced down-regulation of photosynthesis, development of sustained nonphotochemical quenching, accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, expression of a 16-kD dehydrin absent under long photoperiod, and increased freezing tolerance. In ETAC seedlings, photosynthesis was not down-regulated, while accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, dehydrin expression, and freezing tolerance were impaired. ETEC seedlings revealed increased photosynthesis and improved water use efficiency but impaired dehydrin expression and freezing tolerance similar to ETAC seedlings. Sixteen-kilodalton dehydrin expression strongly correlated with increases in freezing tolerance, suggesting its involvement in the development of cold hardiness in P. strobus Our findings suggest that exposure to elevated temperature and CO 2 during autumn can delay down-regulation of photosynthesis and stimulate late-season net photosynthesis in P. strobus seedlings. However, this comes at the cost of impaired freezing tolerance. Elevated temperature and CO 2 also impaired freezing tolerance. However, unless the frequency and timing of extreme low-temperature events changes, this is unlikely to increase risk of freezing damage in P. strobus seedlings. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Modeling tidal marsh distribution with sea-level rise: evaluating the role of vegetation, sediment, and upland habitat in marsh resiliency.

PubMed

Schile, Lisa M; Callaway, John C; Morris, James T; Stralberg, Diana; Parker, V Thomas; Kelly, Maggi

2014-01-01

Tidal marshes maintain elevation relative to sea level through accumulation of mineral and organic matter, yet this dynamic accumulation feedback mechanism has not been modeled widely in the context of accelerated sea-level rise. Uncertainties exist about tidal marsh resiliency to accelerated sea-level rise, reduced sediment supply, reduced plant productivity under increased inundation, and limited upland habitat for marsh migration. We examined marsh resiliency under these uncertainties using the Marsh Equilibrium Model, a mechanistic, elevation-based soil cohort model, using a rich data set of plant productivity and physical properties from sites across the estuarine salinity gradient. Four tidal marshes were chosen along this gradient: two islands and two with adjacent uplands. Varying century sea-level rise (52, 100, 165, 180 cm) and suspended sediment concentrations (100%, 50%, and 25% of current concentrations), we simulated marsh accretion across vegetated elevations for 100 years, applying the results to high spatial resolution digital elevation models to quantify potential changes in marsh distributions. At low rates of sea-level rise and mid-high sediment concentrations, all marshes maintained vegetated elevations indicative of mid/high marsh habitat. With century sea-level rise at 100 and 165 cm, marshes shifted to low marsh elevations; mid/high marsh elevations were found only in former uplands. At the highest century sea-level rise and lowest sediment concentrations, the island marshes became dominated by mudflat elevations. Under the same sediment concentrations, low salinity brackish marshes containing highly productive vegetation had slower elevation loss compared to more saline sites with lower productivity. A similar trend was documented when comparing against a marsh accretion model that did not model vegetation feedbacks. Elevation predictions using the Marsh Equilibrium Model highlight the importance of including vegetation responses to sea-level rise. These results also emphasize the importance of adjacent uplands for long-term marsh survival and incorporating such areas in conservation planning efforts.

25 years of elevation changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet from ERS, Envisat, and CryoSat-2 radar altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandberg Sørensen, Louise; Simonsen, Sebastian B.; Forsberg, René; Khvorostovsky, Kirill; Meister, Rakia; Engdahl, Marcus E.

2018-08-01

The shape of the large ice sheets responds rapidly to climate change, making the elevation changes of these ice-covered regions an essential climate variable. Consistent, long time series of these elevation changes are of great scientific value. Here, we present a newly-developed data product of 25 years of elevation changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet, derived from satellite radar altimetry. The data product is made publicly available within the Greenland Ice Sheets project as part of the ESA Climate Change Initiative programme. Analyzing repeated elevation measurements from radar altimetry is widely used for monitoring changes of ice-covered regions. The Greenland Ice Sheet has been mapped by conventional radar altimetry since the launch of ERS-1 in 1991, which was followed by ERS-2, Envisat and currently CryoSat-2. The recently launched Sentinel-3A will provide a continuation of the radar altimetry time series. Since 2010, CryoSat-2 has for the first time measured the changes in the coastal regions of the ice sheet with radar altimetry, with its novel SAR Interferometric (SARIn) mode, which provides improved measurement over regions with steep slopes. Here, we apply a mission-specific combination of cross-over, along-track and plane-fit elevation change algorithms to radar data from the ERS-1, ERS-2, Envisat and CryoSat-2 radar missions, resulting in 25 years of nearly continuous elevation change estimates (1992-2016) of the Greenland Ice Sheet. This analysis has been made possible through the recent reprocessing in the REAPER project, of data from the ERS-1 and ERS-2 radar missions, making them consistent with Envisat data. The 25 years of elevation changes are evaluated as 5-year running means, shifted almost continuously by one year. A clear acceleration in thinning is evident in the 5-year maps of elevation following 2003, while only small elevation changes observed in the maps from the 1990s.

Elevated Temperature and CO2 Stimulate Late-Season Photosynthesis But Impair Cold Hardening in Pine[OPEN

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Rising global temperature and CO2 levels may sustain late-season net photosynthesis of evergreen conifers but could also impair the development of cold hardiness. Our study investigated how elevated temperature, and the combination of elevated temperature with elevated CO2, affected photosynthetic rates, leaf carbohydrates, freezing tolerance, and proteins involved in photosynthesis and cold hardening in Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus). We designed an experiment where control seedlings were acclimated to long photoperiod (day/night 14/10 h), warm temperature (22°C/15°C), and either ambient (400 μL L−1) or elevated (800 μmol mol−1) CO2, and then shifted seedlings to growth conditions with short photoperiod (8/16 h) and low temperature/ambient CO2 (LTAC), elevated temperature/ambient CO2 (ETAC), or elevated temperature/elevated CO2 (ETEC). Exposure to LTAC induced down-regulation of photosynthesis, development of sustained nonphotochemical quenching, accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, expression of a 16-kD dehydrin absent under long photoperiod, and increased freezing tolerance. In ETAC seedlings, photosynthesis was not down-regulated, while accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, dehydrin expression, and freezing tolerance were impaired. ETEC seedlings revealed increased photosynthesis and improved water use efficiency but impaired dehydrin expression and freezing tolerance similar to ETAC seedlings. Sixteen-kilodalton dehydrin expression strongly correlated with increases in freezing tolerance, suggesting its involvement in the development of cold hardiness in P. strobus. Our findings suggest that exposure to elevated temperature and CO2 during autumn can delay down-regulation of photosynthesis and stimulate late-season net photosynthesis in P. strobus seedlings. However, this comes at the cost of impaired freezing tolerance. Elevated temperature and CO2 also impaired freezing tolerance. However, unless the frequency and timing of extreme low-temperature events changes, this is unlikely to increase risk of freezing damage in P. strobus seedlings. PMID:27591187

Effects of flooding regime and seedling treatment on early survival and growth of nuttall oak

USGS Publications Warehouse

Burkett, V.R.; Draugelis-Dale, R.O.; Williams, H.M.; Schoenholtz, S.H.

2005-01-01

Effects of flooding on survival and growth of three different types of Nuttall oak (Quercus texana Buckl.) seedlings were observed at the end of third and fifth growing seasons at Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge, Mississippi, U.S.A. Three types of seedlings were planted in January 1995 in a split-plot design, with four replications at each of two elevations on floodprone, former cropland in Sharkey clay soil. The lower of the two planting elevations was inundated for 21 days during the first growing season, whereas the higher elevation did not flood during the 5-year period of this study. The three types of 1-0 seedlings were bareroot seedlings, seedlings grown in containers (3.8 ?? 21a??cm plastic seedling cones), and container-grown seedlings inoculated with vegetative mycelia of Pisolithus tinctorius (Pers.) Coker. Survival of all the three seedling types was greatest at the lower, intermittently flooded elevation, indicating that drought and related effects on plant competition were more limiting to seedling survival than flooding. At the lower elevation, survival of mycorrhizal-inoculated container seedlings was greater than that of noninoculated container seedlings. Survival among bareroot seedlings and inoculated container seedlings was not significantly different at either elevation. At the higher, nonflooded elevation, however, bareroot seedling survival was greater than the survival of container seedlings without inoculation. Differences were significant among the inoculated and the noninoculated container seedlings, with higher survival of inoculated seedlings at both elevations, though differences were only significant in year 3. At the end of the fifth year, height of bareroot seedlings was significantly greater than the heights of both types of container-grown seedlings at both planting elevations. Because seedlings grown in the plastic seedlings cones did not survive better than the bareroot seedlings at either planting elevation, the bareroot stock appear to be the economically superior choice for regeneration in Sharkey soil.

Facilitating adaptation in montane plants to changing precipitation along an elevation gradient

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hess, Steve; Leopold, Christina

2017-01-01

Montane plant communities throughout the world have responded to changes in precipitation and temperature regimes by shifting ranges upward in elevation. Continued warmer, drier climate conditions have been documented and are projected to increase in high-elevation areas in Hawai‘i, consistent with climate change effects reported in other environments throughout the world. Organisms that cannot disperse or adapt biologically to projected climate scenarios in situ may decrease in distributional range and abundance over time. Restoration efforts will need to accommodate future climate change and account for the interactive effects of existing invasive species to ensure long-term persistence. As part of a larger, ongoing restoration effort, we hypothesized that plants from a lower-elevation forest ecotype would have higher rates of survival and growth compared to high-elevation forest conspecifics when grown in common plots along an elevation gradient. We monitored climate conditions at planting sites to identify whether temperature or rainfall influenced survival and growth after 20 weeks. We found that origin significantly affected survival in only one of three native montane species, Dodonaea viscosa. Contrary to our hypothesis, 75.2% of seedlings from high-elevation origin survived in comparison to 58.7% of seedlings from low elevation across the entire elevation gradient. Origin also influenced survival in linearized mixed models that controlled for temperature, precipitation, and elevation in D. viscosa and Chenopodium oahuense. Only C. oahuense seedlings had similar predictors of growth and survival. There were no common patterns of growth or survival between species, indicating that responses to changing precipitation and emperature regimes varied between montane plant species. Results also suggest that locally sourced seed is important to ensure highest survival at restoration sites. Further experimentation on larger spatial and temporal scales is necessary to determine the empirical responses of species and communities to changing climate in the full context of highly degraded Hawaiian ecosystems.

A Paleoclimate Modeling Perspective on the Challenges to Quantifying Paleoelevation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poulsen, C. J.; Aron, P.; Feng, R.; Fiorella, R.; Shen, H.; Skinner, C. B.

2016-12-01

Surface elevation is a fundamental characteristic of the land surface. Gradients in elevation associated with mountain ranges are a first order control on local and regional climate; weathering, erosion and nutrient transport; and the evolution and biodiversity of organisms. In addition, surface elevations are a proxy for the geodynamic processes that created them. Efforts to quantify paleoelevation have relied on reconstructions of mineralogical and fossil proxies that preserve environmental signals such as surface temperature, moist enthalpy, or surface water isotopic composition that have been observed to systematically vary with elevation. The challenge to estimating paleoelevation from proxies arises because the modern-day elevation dependence of these environmental parameters is not constant and has differed in the past in response to changes in both surface elevation and other climatic forcings, including greenhouse gas and orbital variations. For example, downward mixing of vapor that is isotopically enriched through troposphere warming under greenhouse forcing reduces the isotopic lapse rate. Without considering these factors, paleoelevation estimates for orogenic systems can be in error by hundreds of meters or more. Isotope-enabled climate models provide a tool for separating the climate response to these forcings into elevation and non-elevation components and for identifying the processes that alter the elevation dependence of environmental parameters. Our past and ongoing work has focused on the simulated climate response to surface uplift of the South American Andes, the North American Cordillera, and the Tibetan-Himalyan system during the Cenozoic, and its implication for interpreting proxy records from these regions. This work demonstrates that the climate response to uplift, and the implications for interpreting proxy records, varies tremendously by region. In this presentation, we synthesize climate responses to uplift across orogens, present new results examining the affect of orbital variations on elevation-dependent environmental parameters, and discuss the implications of our work for quantifying paleoelevations.

Elevational Variation in Soil Amino Acid and Inorganic Nitrogen Concentrations in Taibai Mountain, China.

PubMed

Cao, Xiaochuang; Ma, Qingxu; Zhong, Chu; Yang, Xin; Zhu, Lianfeng; Zhang, Junhua; Jin, Qianyu; Wu, Lianghuan

2016-01-01

Amino acids are important sources of soil organic nitrogen (N), which is essential for plant nutrition, but detailed information about which amino acids predominant and whether amino acid composition varies with elevation is lacking. In this study, we hypothesized that the concentrations of amino acids in soil would increase and their composition would vary along the elevational gradient of Taibai Mountain, as plant-derived organic matter accumulated and N mineralization and microbial immobilization of amino acids slowed with reduced soil temperature. Results showed that the concentrations of soil extractable total N, extractable organic N and amino acids significantly increased with elevation due to the accumulation of soil organic matter and the greater N content. Soil extractable organic N concentration was significantly greater than that of the extractable inorganic N (NO3--N + NH4+-N). On average, soil adsorbed amino acid concentration was approximately 5-fold greater than that of the free amino acids, which indicates that adsorbed amino acids extracted with the strong salt solution likely represent a potential source for the replenishment of free amino acids. We found no appreciable evidence to suggest that amino acids with simple molecular structure were dominant at low elevations, whereas amino acids with high molecular weight and complex aromatic structure dominated the high elevations. Across the elevational gradient, the amino acid pool was dominated by alanine, aspartic acid, glycine, glutamic acid, histidine, serine and threonine. These seven amino acids accounted for approximately 68.9% of the total hydrolyzable amino acid pool. The proportions of isoleucine, tyrosine and methionine varied with elevation, while soil major amino acid composition (including alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, glycine, histidine, leucine, phenylalanine, serine, threonine and valine) did not vary appreciably with elevation (p>0.10). The compositional similarity of many amino acids across the elevational gradient suggests that soil amino acids likely originate from a common source or through similar biochemical processes.

ICESat laser altimetry over small mountain glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Treichler, Désirée; Kääb, Andreas

2016-09-01

Using sparsely glaciated southern Norway as a case study, we assess the potential and limitations of ICESat laser altimetry for analysing regional glacier elevation change in rough mountain terrain. Differences between ICESat GLAS elevations and reference elevation data are plotted over time to derive a glacier surface elevation trend for the ICESat acquisition period 2003-2008. We find spatially varying biases between ICESat and three tested digital elevation models (DEMs): the Norwegian national DEM, SRTM DEM, and a high-resolution lidar DEM. For regional glacier elevation change, the spatial inconsistency of reference DEMs - a result of spatio-temporal merging - has the potential to significantly affect or dilute trends. Elevation uncertainties of all three tested DEMs exceed ICESat elevation uncertainty by an order of magnitude, and are thus limiting the accuracy of the method, rather than ICESat uncertainty. ICESat matches glacier size distribution of the study area well and measures small ice patches not commonly monitored in situ. The sample is large enough for spatial and thematic subsetting. Vertical offsets to ICESat elevations vary for different glaciers in southern Norway due to spatially inconsistent reference DEM age. We introduce a per-glacier correction that removes these spatially varying offsets, and considerably increases trend significance. Only after application of this correction do individual campaigns fit observed in situ glacier mass balance. Our correction also has the potential to improve glacier trend significance for other causes of spatially varying vertical offsets, for instance due to radar penetration into ice and snow for the SRTM DEM or as a consequence of mosaicking and merging that is common for national or global DEMs. After correction of reference elevation bias, we find that ICESat provides a robust and realistic estimate of a moderately negative glacier mass balance of around -0.36 ± 0.07 m ice per year. This regional estimate agrees well with the heterogeneous but overall negative in situ glacier mass balance observed in the area.

Analysis of stable isotope ratios (δ18O and δ2H) in precipitation of the Verde River watershed, Arizona 2003 through 2014

USGS Publications Warehouse

Beisner, Kimberly R.; Paretti, Nicholas V.; Tucci, Rachel S.

2016-04-25

Stable isotope delta values (δ18O and δ2H) of precipitation can vary with elevation, and quantification of the precipitation elevation gradient can be used to predict recharge elevation within a watershed. Precipitation samples were analyzed for stable isotope delta values between 2003 and 2014 from the Verde River watershed of north-central Arizona. Results indicate a significant decrease in summer isotopic values overtime at 3,100-, 4,100-, 6,100-, 7,100-, and 8,100-feet elevation. The updated local meteoric water line for the area is δ2H = 7.11 δ18O + 3.40. Equations to predict stable isotopic values based on elevation were updated from previous publications in Blasch and others (2006), Blasch and Bryson (2007), and Bryson and others (2007). New equations were separated for samples from the Camp Verde to Flagstaff transect and the Prescott to Chino Valley transect. For the Camp Verde to Flagstaff transect, the new equations for winter precipitation are δ18O = -0.0004z − 8.87 and δ2H = -0.0029z − 59.8 (where z represents elevation in feet) and the summer precipitation equations were not statistically significant. For the Prescott to Chino Valley transect, the new equations for summer precipitation are δ18O = -0.0005z − 3.22 and δ2H = -0.0022z − 27.9; the winter precipitation equations were not statistically significant and, notably, stable isotope values were similar across all elevations. Interpretation of elevation of recharge contributing to surface and groundwaters in the Verde River watershed using the updated equations for the Camp Verde to Flagstaff transect will give lower elevation values compared with interpretations presented in the previous studies. For waters in the Prescott and Chino Valley area, more information is needed to understand local controls on stable isotope values related to elevation.

A comparison of U.S. geological survey seamless elevation models with shuttle radar topography mission data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gesch, D.; Williams, J.; Miller, W.

2001-01-01

Elevation models produced from Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) data will be the most comprehensive, consistently processed, highest resolution topographic dataset ever produced for the Earth's land surface. Many applications that currently use elevation data will benefit from the increased availability of data with higher accuracy, quality, and resolution, especially in poorly mapped areas of the globe. SRTM data will be produced as seamless data, thereby avoiding many of the problems inherent in existing multi-source topographic databases. Serving as precursors to SRTM datasets, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has produced and is distributing seamless elevation datasets that facilitate scientific use of elevation data over large areas. GTOPO30 is a global elevation model with a 30 arc-second resolution (approximately 1-kilometer). The National Elevation Dataset (NED) covers the United States at a resolution of 1 arc-second (approximately 30-meters). Due to their seamless format and broad area coverage, both GTOPO30 and NED represent an advance in the usability of elevation data, but each still includes artifacts from the highly variable source data used to produce them. The consistent source data and processing approach for SRTM data will result in elevation products that will be a significant addition to the current availability of seamless datasets, specifically for many areas outside the U.S. One application that demonstrates some advantages that may be realized with SRTM data is delineation of land surface drainage features (watersheds and stream channels). Seamless distribution of elevation data in which a user interactively specifies the area of interest and order parameters via a map server is already being successfully demonstrated with existing USGS datasets. Such an approach for distributing SRTM data is ideal for a dataset that undoubtedly will be of very high interest to the spatial data user community.

Kinematic and Kinetic Analysis of Repeated and Static Elevé in Adolescent Female Dance Students.

PubMed

Abraham, Amit; Dunsky, Ayelet; Hackney, Madeleine E; Dickstein, Ruth

2018-03-15

Elevé is a fundamental dance movement practiced routinely by dance students and serving as an integral component of screening in dance. It consists of ankle plantar flexion (PF) movement and is considered to be a frequent cause of foot and ankle injuries among dancers, with adolescent female dance students being at greatest risk for such injuries. Therefore, gaining additional knowledge regarding elevé functional range of motion (ROM) and inter-leg weightbearing distribution (WBD) properties among adolescent dance students is warranted for pedagogic, screening, injury prevention, and rehabilitation purposes. The aims of this study were three-fold: 1. to report and compare dance-specific, functional kinematic (ankle PF maximum angle and ankle PF ROM), kinetic (inter-leg WBD), and self-reported level of difficulty (balance, muscular force, and concentration) properties of repeated and static elevé among adolescent female dance students; 2. to look for correlations between elevé properties and participants' demographics (age, height, weight, dance experience, and leg dominance); and 3. to describe the relationships between the two kinematic properties in both elevé tasks. Twenty-three adolescent female dance students (mean age 13.57 ± 0.50 years) were measured while performing two elevé tasks: 10 repetitions ("repeated elevé task") and 10 consecutive seconds hold ("static elevé task"). Data regarding ankle motion and WBD were collected and analyzed using three-dimensional motion capture and two force plates. The data gained from this study expand our current understanding of elevé dance movement and may contribute to clinical relevancy and applicability of screening procedures being conducted in pre-professional dance settings. This may help to identify adolescent dance students with the potential to undertake a career in professional dance as well as to investigate the parameters associated with risk of ankle injuries in this population.

Elevational Variation in Soil Amino Acid and Inorganic Nitrogen Concentrations in Taibai Mountain, China

PubMed Central

Yang, Xin; Zhu, Lianfeng; Zhang, Junhua; Jin, Qianyu; Wu, Lianghuan

2016-01-01

Amino acids are important sources of soil organic nitrogen (N), which is essential for plant nutrition, but detailed information about which amino acids predominant and whether amino acid composition varies with elevation is lacking. In this study, we hypothesized that the concentrations of amino acids in soil would increase and their composition would vary along the elevational gradient of Taibai Mountain, as plant-derived organic matter accumulated and N mineralization and microbial immobilization of amino acids slowed with reduced soil temperature. Results showed that the concentrations of soil extractable total N, extractable organic N and amino acids significantly increased with elevation due to the accumulation of soil organic matter and the greater N content. Soil extractable organic N concentration was significantly greater than that of the extractable inorganic N (NO3−-N + NH4+-N). On average, soil adsorbed amino acid concentration was approximately 5-fold greater than that of the free amino acids, which indicates that adsorbed amino acids extracted with the strong salt solution likely represent a potential source for the replenishment of free amino acids. We found no appreciable evidence to suggest that amino acids with simple molecular structure were dominant at low elevations, whereas amino acids with high molecular weight and complex aromatic structure dominated the high elevations. Across the elevational gradient, the amino acid pool was dominated by alanine, aspartic acid, glycine, glutamic acid, histidine, serine and threonine. These seven amino acids accounted for approximately 68.9% of the total hydrolyzable amino acid pool. The proportions of isoleucine, tyrosine and methionine varied with elevation, while soil major amino acid composition (including alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, glycine, histidine, leucine, phenylalanine, serine, threonine and valine) did not vary appreciably with elevation (p>0.10). The compositional similarity of many amino acids across the elevational gradient suggests that soil amino acids likely originate from a common source or through similar biochemical processes. PMID:27337100

[Distribution pattern of rare plants along riparian zone and its implication for conservation in Shennongjia area].

PubMed

Jiang, Mingxi; Deng, Hongbing; Cai, Qinghua

2002-11-01

Due to the importance of riparian zone in maintaining and protecting regional biodiversity, more and more ecologists paid their attentions to riparian zone, and had been aware of the important effects of riparian zone in basic study and practical management. In this study, forty sampling belts (10 m x 100 m) parallel to the bank of Xiangxi River at different elevations in Shennongjia area were selected to investigate the riparian vegetation and rare plants. Fourteen species of rare plants were found in riparian zone, accounting for 42.4% of total rare plant species in Shennongjia area. The main distribution range of the fourteen rare plant species was the mixed evergreen and deciduous broadleaved forest at elevation of 1200-1800 m, where species diversity of plant community was the maximum at the moderate elevation. Fourteen rare plant species could be divided into three groups against the elevation, namely low elevation species group, moderate elevation species group, and high elevation group. In the paper, the authors discussed the reasons forming the distribution pattern of rare plant species, and pointed out the important function of riparian zone on rare plant species protection.

Diet of land birds along an elevational gradient in Papua New Guinea.

PubMed

Sam, Katerina; Koane, Bonny; Jeppy, Samuel; Sykorova, Jana; Novotny, Vojtech

2017-03-09

Food preferences and exploitation are crucial to many aspects of avian ecology and are of increasing importance as we progress in our understanding of community ecology. We studied birds and their feeding specialization in the Central Range of Papua New Guinea, at eight study sites along a complete (200 to 3700 m a.s.l.) rainforest elevational gradient. The relative species richness and abundance increased with increasing elevation for insect and nectar eating birds, and decreased with elevation for fruit feeding birds. Using emetic tartar, we coerced 999 individuals from 99 bird species to regurgitate their stomach contents and studied these food samples. The proportion of arthropods in food samples increased with increasing elevation at the expense of plant material. Body size of arthropods eaten by birds decreased with increasing elevation. This reflected the parallel elevational trend in the body size of arthropods available in the forest understory. Body size of insectivorous birds was significantly positively correlated with the body size of arthropods they ate. Coleoptera were the most exploited arthropods, followed by Araneae, Hymenoptera, and Lepidoptera. Selectivity indexes showed that most of the arthropod taxa were taken opportunistically, reflecting the spatial patterns in arthropod abundances to which the birds were exposed.

Growth overcompensation against O3 exposure in two Japanese oak species, Quercus mongolica var. crispula and Quercus serrata, grown under elevated CO2.

PubMed

Kitao, Mitsutoshi; Komatsu, Masabumi; Yazaki, Kenichi; Kitaoka, Satoshi; Tobita, Hiroyuki

2015-11-01

To assess the effects of elevated concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) and ozone (O3) on the growth of two mid-successional oak species native to East Asia, Quercus mongolica var. crispula and Quercus serrata, we measured gas exchange and biomass allocation in seedlings (initially 1-year-old) grown under combinations of elevated CO2 (550 μmol mol(-1)) and O3 (twice-ambient) for two growing seasons in an open-field experiment in which root growth was not limited. Both the oak species showed a significant growth enhancement under the combination of elevated CO2 and O3 (indicated by total dry mass; over twice of ambient-grown plants, p < .05), which probably resulted from a preferable biomass partitioning into leaves induced by O3 and a predominant enhancement of photosynthesis under elevated CO2. Such an over-compensative response in the two Japanese oak species resulted in greater plant growth under the combination of elevated CO2 and O3 than elevated CO2 alone. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elevator ride comfort monitoring and evaluation using smartphones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yang; Sun, Xiaowei; Zhao, Xuefeng; Su, Wensheng

2018-05-01

With rapid urbanization, the demand for elevators is increasing, and their level of safety and ride comfort under vibrating conditions has also aroused interest. It is therefore essential to monitor the ride comfort level of elevators. The traditional method for such monitoring depends significantly on regular professional inspections, and requires expensive equipment and professional skill. With this regard, a new method for elevator ride comfort monitoring using a smartphone is demonstrated herein in detail. A variety of high-precision sensors are installed in a smartphone with strong data processing and telecommunication capabilities. A series of validation tests were designed and completed, and the international organization for standardization ISO2631-1997 was applied to evaluate the level of elevator ride comfort. Experimental results indicate that the proposed method is stable and reliable, its precision meets the engineering requirements, and the elevator ride comfort level can be accurately monitored under various situations. The method is very economical and convenient, and provides the possibility for the public to participate in elevator ride comfort monitoring. In addition, the method can both provide a wide range of data support and eliminate data errors to a certain extent.

Spatial and temporal characteristics of elevated temperatures in municipal solid waste landfills.

PubMed

Jafari, Navid H; Stark, Timothy D; Thalhamer, Todd

2017-01-01

Elevated temperatures in waste containment facilities can pose health, environmental, and safety risks because they generate toxic gases, pressures, leachate, and heat. In particular, MSW landfills undergo changes in behavior that typically follow a progression of indicators, e.g., elevated temperatures, changes in gas composition, elevated gas pressures, increased leachate migration, slope movement, and unusual and rapid surface settlement. This paper presents two MSW landfill case studies that show the spatial and time-lapse movements of these indicators and identify four zones that illustrate the transition of normal MSW decomposition to the region of elevated temperatures. The spatial zones are gas front, temperature front, and smoldering front. The gas wellhead temperature and the ratio of CH 4 to CO 2 are used to delineate the boundaries between normal MSW decomposition, gas front, and temperature front. The ratio of CH 4 to CO 2 and carbon monoxide concentrations along with settlement strain rates and subsurface temperatures are used to delineate the smoldering front. In addition, downhole temperatures can be used to estimate the rate of movement of elevated temperatures, which is important for isolating and containing the elevated temperature in a timely manner. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Plastic pikas: Behavioural flexibility in low-elevation pikas (Ochotona princeps)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Varner, Johanna; Horns, Joshua J.; Lambert, Mallory S.; Westberg, Elizabeth; Ruff, James; Wolfenberger, Katelyn; Beever, Erik; Dearing, M. Denise

2016-01-01

Behaviour is an important mechanism for accommodating rapid environmental changes. Understanding a species’ capacity for behavioural plasticity is therefore a key, but understudied, aspect of developing tractable conservation and management plans under climate-change scenarios. Here, we quantified behavioural differences between American pikas (Ochotona princeps) living in an atypical, low-elevation habitat versus those living in a more-typical, alpine habitat. With respect to foraging strategy, low-elevation pikas spent more time consuming vegetation and less time caching food for winter, compared to high-elevation pikas. Low-elevation pikas were also far more likely to be detected in forested microhabitats off the talus than their high-elevation counterparts at midday. Finally, pikas living in the atypical habitat had smaller home range sizes compared to those in typical habitat or any previously published home ranges for this species. Our findings indicate that behavioural plasticity likely allows pikas to accommodate atypical conditions in this low-elevation habitat, and that they may rely on critical habitat factors such as suitable microclimate refugia to behaviourally thermoregulate. Together, these results suggest that behavioural adjustments are one important mechanism by which pikas can persist outside of their previously appreciated dietary and thermal niches.

Associations between adiposity indicators and elevated blood pressure among Chinese children and adolescents.

PubMed

Dong, B; Wang, Z; Wang, H-J; Ma, J

2015-04-01

Adiposity is closely related to elevated blood pressure (BP); however, which adiposity indicator is the best predictor of elevated BP among children and adolescents is unclear. To clarify this, 99,366 participants aged 7-17 years from the Chinese National Survey on Students' Constitution and Health in 2010 were included in this study. The adiposity indicators, including weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), hip circumference, body adiposity index (BAI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and skinfold thickness, were converted into z-scores before use. The associations between elevated BP and adiposity indicators z-scores were assessed by using logistic regression model and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). In general, BAI, BMI and WHtR z-scores were superior for predicting elevated BP compared with weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, WHR and skinfold thickness z-scores. In both sexes, BMI z-score revealed slightly higher AUCs than other indicators. Our findings suggest that general adiposity indicators were equivalent, if not superior, to abdominal adiposity indicators to predict elevated BP. BMI could be a better predictor of elevated BP than other studied adiposity indicators in children.

Moral identity and the experience of moral elevation in response to acts of uncommon goodness.

PubMed

Aquino, Karl; McFerran, Brent; Laven, Marjorie

2011-04-01

Four studies using survey and experimental designs examined whether people whose moral identity is highly self-defining are more susceptible to experiencing a state of moral elevation after being exposed to acts of uncommon moral goodness. Moral elevation consists of a suite of responses that motivate prosocial action tendencies. Study 1 showed that people higher (vs. lower) in moral identity centrality reported experiencing more intense elevating emotions, had more positive views of humanity, and were more desirous of becoming a better person after reading about an act of uncommon goodness than about a merely positive situation or an act of common benevolence. Study 2 showed that those high in moral identity centrality were more likely to recall acts of moral goodness and experience moral elevation in response to such events more strongly. These experiences were positively related to self-reported prosocial behavior. Study 3 showed a direct effect on behavior using manipulated, rather than measured, moral identity centrality. Study 4 replicated the effect of moral identity on the states of elevation as well as on self-reported physical sensations and showed that the elevation mediates the relationship between moral identity, witnessing uncommon goodness, and prosocial behavior.

Ecological complexity buffers the impacts of future climate on marine consumers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldenberg, Silvan U.; Nagelkerken, Ivan; Marangon, Emma; Bonnet, Angélique; Ferreira, Camilo M.; Connell, Sean D.

2018-03-01

Ecological complexity represents a network of interacting components that either propagate or counter the effects of environmental change on individuals and communities1-3. Yet, our understanding of the ecological imprint of ocean acidification (elevated CO2) and climate change (elevated temperature) is largely based on reports of negative effects on single species in simplified laboratory systems4,5. By combining a large mesocosm experiment with a global meta-analysis, we reveal the capacity of consumers (fish and crustaceans) to resist the impacts of elevated CO2. While individual behaviours were impaired by elevated CO2, consumers could restore their performances in more complex environments that allowed for compensatory processes. Consequently, consumers maintained key traits such as foraging, habitat selection and predator avoidance despite elevated CO2 and sustained their populations. Our observed increase in risk-taking under elevated temperature, however, predicts greater vulnerability of consumers to predation. Yet, CO2 as a resource boosted the biomass of consumers through species interactions and may stabilize communities by countering the negative effects of elevated temperature. We conclude that compensatory dynamics inherent in the complexity of nature can buffer the impacts of future climate on species and their communities.

Altered soil microbial community at elevated CO2 leads to loss of soil carbon

PubMed Central

Carney, Karen M.; Hungate, Bruce A.; Drake, Bert G.; Megonigal, J. Patrick

2007-01-01

Increased carbon storage in ecosystems due to elevated CO2 may help stabilize atmospheric CO2 concentrations and slow global warming. Many field studies have found that elevated CO2 leads to higher carbon assimilation by plants, and others suggest that this can lead to higher carbon storage in soils, the largest and most stable terrestrial carbon pool. Here we show that 6 years of experimental CO2 doubling reduced soil carbon in a scrub-oak ecosystem despite higher plant growth, offsetting ≈52% of the additional carbon that had accumulated at elevated CO2 in aboveground and coarse root biomass. The decline in soil carbon was driven by changes in soil microbial composition and activity. Soils exposed to elevated CO2 had higher relative abundances of fungi and higher activities of a soil carbon-degrading enzyme, which led to more rapid rates of soil organic matter degradation than soils exposed to ambient CO2. The isotopic composition of microbial fatty acids confirmed that elevated CO2 increased microbial utilization of soil organic matter. These results show how elevated CO2, by altering soil microbial communities, can cause a potential carbon sink to become a carbon source. PMID:17360374

Elevation-dependent cooling caused by volcanic eruptions during last millennium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ning, L.; Liu, J.; Bradley, R. S.; Yan, M.; Sun, W.; Liu, L.

2017-12-01

The amplified warming over the high-elevation regions in recent decades due to the increases of greenhouse gases has attracted lots of attentions, due to the potential severe impacts on mountain hydrological systems and ecosystems and corresponding social and economic influences. Similarly, the model simulations show that the rate of cooling is also amplified with elevation after volcanic eruptions during last millennium, such that high-mountain environments experience larger decreases in temperature than environments at lower elevations. This elevation-dependent cooling (EDC) testifies two important mechanisms, i.e. snow albedo feedback and tropical deep convection mechanism, which also induce the elevation-dependent warming (EDW) found in recent decades due to the increases of greenhouse gases that accelerates the rates of changes in mountain hydrological regimes and ecosystems. It can be concluded that although the influences from natural forcing and anthropogenic forcing on the high-mountain regions are opposite, the mechanisms behind the influences are the same. This finding shows that the temperature change over high-elevation regions is more sensitive to the background climate changes, and needs more attention for adaptations and mitigations due to their bio-diversity and fragile ecosystems.

Land, Ocean and Ice sheet surface elevation retrieval from CALIPSO lidar measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, X.; Hu, Y.

2013-12-01

Since launching in April 2006 the main objective of the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) mission has been studying the climate impact of clouds and aerosols in the atmosphere. However, CALIPSO also collects information about other components of the Earth's ecosystem, such as lands, oceans and polar ice sheets. The objective of this study is to propose a Super-Resolution Altimetry (SRA) technique to provide high resolution of land, ocean and polar ice sheet surface elevation from CALIPSO single shot lidar measurements (70 m spot size). The land surface results by the new technique agree with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) National Elevation Database (NED) high-resolution elevation maps, and the ice sheet surface results in the region of Greenland and Antarctic compare very well with the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) laser altimetry measurements. The comparisons suggest that the obtained CALIPSO surface elevation information by the new technique is accurate to within 1 m. The effects of error sources on the retrieved surface elevation are discussed. Based on the new technique, the preliminary data products of along-track topography retrieved from the CALIPSO lidar measurements is available to the altimetry community for evaluation.

Limitations to soybean photosynthesis at elevated carbon dioxide in free-air enrichment and open top chamber systems.

PubMed

Bunce, James A

2014-09-01

It has been suggested that the stimulation of soybean photosynthesis by elevated CO2 was less in free-air carbon dioxide enrichment (FACE) systems than in open top chambers (OTC), which might explain smaller yield increases at elevated CO2 in FACE systems. However, this has not been tested using the same cultivars grown in the same location. I tested whether soybean photosynthesis at high light and elevated CO2 (ambient+180 μmol mol(-1)) was limited by electron transport (J) in FACE systems but by ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylation capacity (VCmax) in OTC. FACE systems with daytime and continuous CO2 enrichment were also compared. The results indicated that in both cultivars examined, midday photosynthesis at high light was always limited by VCmax, both in the FACE and in the OTC systems. Daytime only CO2 enrichment did not affect photosynthetic parameters or limitations, but did result in significantly smaller yields in both cultivars than continuous elevation. Photosynthesis measured at low photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) was not higher at elevated than at ambient CO2, because of an acclimation to elevated CO2 which was only evident at low measurement PPFDs. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

76 FR 1093 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-07

... Communities affected elevation above ground [caret] Elevation in meters (MSL) Modified Stephenson County.../Wisconsin +782 State boundary. Yellow Creek Approximately 400 feet +814 Unincorporated Areas of downstream... Sea Level, rounded to the nearest 0.1 meter. ADDRESSES City of Freeport Maps are available for...

76 FR 20606 - Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-13

... source(s) Location of referenced ground [caret] Communities affected elevation ** Elevation in meters (MSL) Effective Modified Sevier County, Utah, and Incorporated Areas Albinus Canyon Approximately 400... Creek Split Flow Approximately 400 feet None +5435 Town of Joseph. downstream of State Highway 118. At...

Regional elevator survey : grain transportation & industry trends for Great Plains elevators

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-08-01

One potential means for gaining insight into the current state of the elevator industry, : and into expectations for future trends, is through a survey. The objective of this study is to profile the transportation and industry characteristics of the ...

77 FR 73394 - Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-10

... and modified elevations, and communities affected for Mercer County, Pennsylvania (All Jurisdictions... determinations of Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs for communities participating... not be construed to mean that the community must change any existing ordinances that are more...

78 FR 22222 - Proposed Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-15

... of referenced elevations, effective and modified elevations, and communities affected for Mercer...) and modified BFEs for communities participating in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), in... CFR 60.3, are minimum requirements. They should not be construed to mean that the community must...

78 FR 27 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-02

...-2012-0003] Final Flood Elevation Determinations AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made... effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program...

75 FR 78926 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-17

...-2010-0003] Final Flood Elevation Determinations AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made... effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program...

77 FR 74610 - Final Flood Elevation Determinations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-17

...-2012-0003] Final Flood Elevation Determinations AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made... effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program...

Ecology and IPM of Insects at Grain Elevators

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cost-effectiveness of insect pest management depends upon its integration with other elevator operations. Successful integration may require consideration of insect ecology. Field infestation has not been observed for grain received at elevators. Grain may be infested during harvest by residual inse...

Inside the covered hopper car loading dock at railroad level, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Inside the covered hopper car loading dock at railroad level, looking east from the 1945 elevator into the 1913 elevator, control for the railroad car puller in background - Stewart Company Grain Elevator, 16 West Carson Street, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA

Inhalation toxicology. XI., The effect of elevated temperature on carbon monoxide toxicity.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1990-12-01

Laboratory rats were exposed (a) to experimental concentrations of carbon monoxide in air at ambient temperature, (b) to elevated temperature atmospheres from 40 C to 60 C, and (c) to selected carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations at the elevated tem...

Elevated carbon dioxide alters the relative fitness of Taraxacum officinale genotypes

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

I tested whether elevated carbon dioxide concentration differentially affected which genotypes of the apomictic species dandelion produced the largest number of viable seeds in two different field experiments, and identified morphological and physiological traits associated with fitness at elevated ...

2. Historic American Buildings Survey Robert J. Kelley, Photographer May ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. Historic American Buildings Survey Robert J. Kelley, Photographer May 1958 LOOKING NORTH - SHOWS SOUTH ELEVATION, MAIN HOUSE, ROOF OF NORTH ELEVATION AND WEST ELEVATION, WHOSE ROOF WAS RAISED IN RECENT TIMES - Burbank-Hatheway House, Main Street, Suffield, Hartford County, CT

Treatment of acute coronary syndrome: part 2: ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

PubMed

Trost, Jeffrey C; Lange, Richard A

2012-06-01

Familiarize clinicians with recent information regarding the diagnosis and treatment of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. PubMed search and review of relevant medical literature. Definition, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction are reviewed. Patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction benefit from prompt reperfusion therapy. Adjunctive antianginal, antiplatelet, antithrombotic, beta blocker, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, and statin agents minimize ongoing cardiac ischemia, prevent thrombus propagation, and reduce the risk of recurrent cardiovascular events.

Height Error Correction for the New SRTM Elevation Product

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neumann, Maxim; Simard, Marc; Buckley, Sean; Shimada, Joanne; Gurrola, Eric; Martin, Jan; Hensley, Scott; Rosen, Paul

2013-01-01

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), carrying a single-pass interferometric synthetic aperture radar(SAR) instrument, collected a global elevation data set, which has been widely used in scientific, military and commercial communities. In the new proposed NASA SRTM reprocessing task, the SRTM elevation data is going to be processed at higher spatial resolution and with improved height accuracy. Upon completion, the improved SRTM product will be freely available. This paper describes the calibration approaches for reduction of elevation ripple effects and height accuracy improvements.

Ice sheet topography by satellite altimetry

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brooks, R.L.; Campbell, W.J.; Ramseier, R.O.; Stanley, H.R.; Zwally, H.J.

1978-01-01

The surface elevation of the southern Greenland ice sheet and surface features of the ice flow are obtained from the radar altimeter on the GEOS 3 satellite. The achieved accuracy in surface elevation is ???2 m. As changes in surface elevation are indicative of changes in ice volume, the mass balance of the present ice sheets could be determined by repetitive mapping of the surface elevation and the surface could be monitored to detect surging or significant changes in ice flow. ?? 1978 Nature Publishing Group.

51. VIEW OF CRUSHER ADDITION FROM EAST. SHOWS BAKER COOLER ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

51. VIEW OF CRUSHER ADDITION FROM EAST. SHOWS BAKER COOLER AT LOWER LEFT, AND FOUNDATIONS FOR ROD MILL BETWEEN COOLER AND STEPHENS-ADAMSON INCLINED BUCKET ELEVATOR. THE BELT CONVEYOR TO RIGHT OF ELEVATOR FED ELEVATOR FROM ROD MILL. 100-TON ORE BIN AND DUST COLLECTOR IS BEHIND FRAMING BENT. NOTE CONVEYOR EMERGING FROM BOTTOM OF ORE BIN, THIS AND THE INCLINED ELEVATOR FED THE SYMONS SCREEN (MISSING). - Bald Mountain Gold Mill, Nevada Gulch at head of False Bottom Creek, Lead, Lawrence County, SD

SPERTI Instrument Cell Building (PER606) elevation; plan of Guard House ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

SPERT-I Instrument Cell Building (PER-606) elevation; plan of Guard House (PER-607); elevations for Pit Building (PER-605) southwest, southeast, and northeast sides. Earthen shield is mounded between back wall of Instrument Cell Building and the southwest elevation of Pit Building. Detail of filtered louver in door of Instrument Cell Building. Idaho Operations Office PER-605-IDO-3. INEEL index no. 761-0605-00-396-109183 - Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, SPERT-I & Power Burst Facility Area, Scoville, Butte County, ID

Topographic maps: Tools for planning

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kaufman, George A.

1980-01-01

Topographic maps are a detailed record of a land area, giving geographic positions and elevations for both natural and man-made features. They show the shape of the land the mountains, valleys, and plains by means of brown contour lines (lines of equal elevation above sea level). In steep mountainous areas, contours are closely spaced; in flatter areas, they are far apart. The elevation of any point on the map can be estimated by referring to the elevations of the contour lines above and below it.

Growth habit and leaf economics determine gas exchange responses to high elevation in an evergreen tree, a deciduous shrub and a herbaceous annual

PubMed Central

Shi, Zuomin; Haworth, Matthew; Feng, Qiuhong; Cheng, Ruimei; Centritto, Mauro

2015-01-01

Plant growth at high elevations necessitates physiological and morphological plasticity to enable photosynthesis (A) under conditions of reduced temperature, increased radiation and the lower partial pressure of atmospheric gases, in particular carbon dioxide (pCO2). Previous studies have observed a wide range of responses to elevation in plant species depending on their adaptation to temperature, elevational range and growth habit. Here, we investigated the effect of an increase in elevation from 2500 to 3500 m above sea level (a.s.l.) on three montane species with contrasting growth habits and leaf economic strategies. While all of the species showed identical increases in foliar δ13C, dark respiration and nitrogen concentration with elevation, contrasting leaf gas exchange and photosynthetic responses were observed between species with different leaf economic strategies. The deciduous shrub Salix atopantha and annual herb Rumex dentatus exhibited increased stomatal (Gs) and mesophyll (Gm) conductance and enhanced photosynthetic capacity at the higher elevation. However, evergreen Quercus spinosa displayed reduced conductance to CO2 that coincided with lower levels of photosynthetic carbon fixation at 3500 m a.s.l. The lower Gs and Gm values of evergreen species at higher elevations currently constrains their rates of A. Future rises in the atmospheric concentration of CO2 ([CO2]) will likely predominantly affect evergreen species with lower specific leaf areas (SLAs) and levels of Gm rather than deciduous species with higher SLA and Gm values. We argue that climate change may affect plant species that compose high-elevation ecosystems differently depending on phenotypic plasticity and adaptive traits affecting leaf economics, as rising [CO2] is likely to benefit evergreen species with thick sclerophyllous leaves. PMID:26433706

Tropical Rain Forest Structure, Tree Growth and Dynamics along a 2700-m Elevational Transect in Costa Rica

PubMed Central

Clark, David B.; Hurtado, Johanna; Saatchi, Sassan S.

2015-01-01

Rapid biological changes are expected to occur on tropical elevational gradients as species migrate upslope or go extinct in the face of global warming. We established a series of 9 1-ha plots in old-growth tropical rainforest in Costa Rica along a 2700 m relief elevational gradient to carry out long-term monitoring of tropical rain forest structure, dynamics and tree growth. Within each plot we mapped, identified, and annually measured diameter for all woody individuals with stem diameters >10 cm for periods of 3-10 years. Wood species diversity peaked at 400-600 m and decreased substantially at higher elevations. Basal area and stem number varied by less than two-fold, with the exception of the 2800 m cloud forest summit, where basal area and stem number were approximately double that of lower sites. Canopy gaps extending to the forest floor accounted for <3% of microsites at all elevations. Height of highest crowns and the coefficient of variation of crown height both decreased with increasing elevation. Rates of turnover of individuals and of stand basal area decreased with elevation, but rates of diameter growth and stand basal area showed no simple relation to elevation. We discuss issues encountered in the design and implementation of this network of plots, including biased sampling, missing key meteorological and biomass data, and strategies for improving species-level research. Taking full advantage of the major research potential of tropical forest elevational transects will require sustaining and extending ground based studies, incorporation of new remotely-sensed data and data-acquisition platforms, and new funding models to support decadal research on these rapidly-changing systems. PMID:25856163

Axial bone-socket displacement for persons with a traumatic transtibial amputation: The effect of elevated vacuum suspension at progressive body-weight loads.

PubMed

Darter, Benjamin J; Sinitski, Kirill; Wilken, Jason M

2016-10-01

Elevated vacuum suspension systems use a pump to draw air from the socket with the intent of reducing bone-socket motion as compared to passive suction systems. However, it remains unknown if elevated vacuum suspension systems decrease limb displacement uniformly during transitions from unloaded to full-body-weight support. To compare limb-socket motion between elevated vacuum and passive suction suspension sockets using a controlled loading paradigm. Comparative analysis. Persons with transtibial amputation were assessed while wearing either an elevated vacuum or passive suction suspension socket. Digital video fluoroscopy was used to measure axial bone-socket motion while the limb was loaded in 20% body-weight increments. An analysis of variance model was used to compare between suspension types. Total axial displacement (0%-100% body weight) was significantly lower using the elevated vacuum (vacuum: 1.3 cm, passive suction: 1.8 cm; p < 0.0001). Total displacement decreased primarily due to decreased motion during initial loading (0%-20%; p < 0.0001). Other body-weight intervals were not significantly different between systems. Elevated vacuum suspension reduced axial limb-socket motion by maintaining position of the limb within the socket during unloaded conditions. Elevated vacuum provided no meaningful improvement in limb-socket motion past initial loading. Excessive bone-socket motion contributes to poor residual limb health. Our results suggest elevated vacuum suspensions can reduce this axial displacement. Visual assessment of the images suggests that this occurs through the reduction or elimination of the air pocket between the liner and socket wall while the limb is unloaded. © The International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics 2015.

Analysis of elevation changes detected from multi-temporal LiDAR surveys in forested landslide terrain in western Oregon

USGS Publications Warehouse

Burns, W.J.; Coe, J.A.; Kaya, B.S.; Ma, Liwang

2010-01-01

We examined elevation changes detected from two successive sets of Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data in the northern Coast Range of Oregon. The first set of LiDAR data was acquired during leafon conditions and the second set during leaf-off conditions. We were able to successfully identify and map active landslides using a differential digital elevation model (DEM) created from the two LiDAR data sets, but this required the use of thresholds (0.50 and 0.75 m) to remove noise from the differential elevation data, visual pattern recognition of landslideinduced elevation changes, and supplemental QuickBird satellite imagery. After mapping, we field-verified 88 percent of the landslides that we had mapped with high confidence, but we could not detect active landslides with elevation changes of less than 0.50 m. Volumetric calculations showed that a total of about 18,100 m3 of material was missing from landslide areas, probably as a result of systematic negative elevation errors in the differential DEM and as a result of removal of material by erosion and transport. We also examined the accuracies of 285 leaf-off LiDAR elevations at four landslide sites using Global Positioning System and total station surveys. A comparison of LiDAR and survey data indicated an overall root mean square error of 0.50 m, a maximum error of 2.21 m, and a systematic error of 0.09 m. LiDAR ground-point densities were lowest in areas with young conifer forests and deciduous vegetation, which resulted in extensive interpolations of elevations in the leaf-on, bare-earth DEM. For optimal use of multi-temporal LiDAR data in forested areas, we recommend that all data sets be flown during leaf-off seasons.

Alien dominance of the parasitoid wasp community along an elevation gradient on Hawai'i Island

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peck, R.W.; Banko, P.C.; Schwarzfeld, M.; Euaparadorn, M.; Brinck, K.W.

2008-01-01

Through intentional and accidental introduction, more than 100 species of alien Ichneumonidae and Braconidae (Hymenoptera) have become established in the Hawaiian Islands. The extent to which these parasitoid wasps have penetrated native wet forests was investigated over a 1,765 m elevation gradient on windward Hawai'i Island. For >1 year, malaise traps were used to continuously monitor parasitoid abundance and species richness in nine sites over three elevations. A total of 18,996 individuals from 16 subfamilies were collected. Overall, the fauna was dominated by aliens, with 44 of 58 species foreign to the Hawaiian Islands. Ichneumonidae was dominant over Braconidae in terms of both diversity and abundance, comprising 67.5% of individuals and 69.0% of species collected. Parasitoid abundance and species richness varied significantly with elevation: abundance was greater at mid and high elevations compared to low elevation while species richness increased with increasing elevation, with all three elevations differing significantly from each other. Nine species purposely introduced to control pest insects were found, but one braconid, Meteorus laphygmae, comprised 98.0% of this assemblage, or 28.3% of the entire fauna. Endemic species, primarily within the genera Spolas and Enicospilus, were collected almost exclusively at mid- and high-elevation sites, where they made up 22.1% and 36.0% of the total catch, respectively. Overall, 75.9% of species and 96.0% of individuals are inferred to parasitize Lepidoptera larvae and pupae. Our results support previous data indicating that alien parasitoids have deeply penetrated native forest habitats and may have substantial impacts on Hawaiian ecosystems. ?? 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Effect of Elevated CO2 Concentration, Elevated Temperature and No Nitrogen Fertilization on Methanogenic Archaeal and Methane-Oxidizing Bacterial Community Structures in Paddy Soil

PubMed Central

Liu, Dongyan; Tago, Kanako; Hayatsu, Masahito; Tokida, Takeshi; Sakai, Hidemitsu; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Usui, Yasuhiro; Hasegawa, Toshihiro; Asakawa, Susumu

2016-01-01

Elevated concentrations of atmospheric CO2 ([CO2]) enhance the production and emission of methane in paddy fields. In the present study, the effects of elevated [CO2], elevated temperature (ET), and no nitrogen fertilization (LN) on methanogenic archaeal and methane-oxidizing bacterial community structures in a free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) experimental paddy field were investigated by PCR-DGGE and real-time quantitative PCR. Soil samples were collected from the upper and lower soil layers at the rice panicle initiation (PI) and mid-ripening (MR) stages. The composition of the methanogenic archaeal community in the upper and lower soil layers was not markedly affected by the elevated [CO2], ET, or LN condition. The abundance of the methanogenic archaeal community in the upper and lower soil layers was also not affected by elevated [CO2] or ET, but was significantly increased at the rice PI stage and significantly decreased by LN in the lower soil layer. In contrast, the composition of the methane-oxidizing bacterial community was affected by rice-growing stages in the upper soil layer. The abundance of methane-oxidizing bacteria was significantly decreased by elevated [CO2] and LN in both soil layers at the rice MR stage and by ET in the upper soil layer. The ratio of mcrA/pmoA genes correlated with methane emission from ambient and FACE paddy plots at the PI stage. These results indicate that the decrease observed in the abundance of methane-oxidizing bacteria was related to increased methane emission from the paddy field under the elevated [CO2], ET, and LN conditions. PMID:27600710

Carbon balance, partitioning and photosynthetic acclimation in fruit-bearing grapevine (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Tempranillo) grown under simulated climate change (elevated CO2, elevated temperature and moderate drought) scenarios in temperature gradient greenhouses.

PubMed

Salazar-Parra, Carolina; Aranjuelo, Iker; Pascual, Inmaculada; Erice, Gorka; Sanz-Sáez, Álvaro; Aguirreolea, Jone; Sánchez-Díaz, Manuel; Irigoyen, Juan José; Araus, José Luis; Morales, Fermín

2015-02-01

Although plant performance under elevated CO2 has been extensively studied in the past little is known about photosynthetic performance changing simultaneously CO2, water availability and temperature conditions. Moreover, despite of its relevancy in crop responsiveness to elevated CO2 conditions, plant level C balance is a topic that, comparatively, has received little attention. In order to test responsiveness of grapevine photosynthetic apparatus to predicted climate change conditions, grapevine (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Tempranillo) fruit-bearing cuttings were exposed to different CO2 (elevated, 700ppm vs. ambient, ca. 400ppm), temperature (ambient vs. elevated, ambient +4°C) and irrigation levels (partial vs. full irrigation). Carbon balance was followed monitoring net photosynthesis (AN, C gain), respiration (RD) and photorespiration (RL) (C losses). Modification of environment (13)C isotopic composition (δ(13)C) under elevated CO2 (from -10.30 to -24.93‰) enabled the further characterization of C partitioning into roots, cuttings, shoots, petioles, leaves, rachides and berries. Irrespective of irrigation level and temperature, exposure to elevated CO2 induced photosynthetic acclimation of plants. C/N imbalance reflected the inability of plants grown at 700ppm CO2 to develop strong C sinks. Partitioning of labeled C to storage organs (main stem and roots) did not avoid accumulation of labeled photoassimilates in leaves, affecting negatively Rubisco carboxylation activity. The study also revealed that, after 20 days of treatment, no oxidative damage to chlorophylls or carotenoids was observed, suggesting a protective role of CO2 either at current or elevated temperatures against the adverse effect of water stress. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Variation in freshwater fish assemblages along a regional elevation gradient in the northern Andes, Colombia

PubMed Central

Carvajal-Quintero, Juan D; Escobar, Federico; Alvarado, Fredy; Villa-Navarro, Francisco A; Jaramillo-Villa, Úrsula; Maldonado-Ocampo, Javier A

2015-01-01

Studies on elevation diversity gradients have covered a large number of taxa and regions throughout the world; however, studies of freshwater fish are scarce and restricted to examining their changes along a specific gradient. These studies have reported a monotonic decrease in species richness with increasing elevation, but ignore the high taxonomic differentiation of each headwater assemblage that may generate high β-diversity among them. Here, we analyzed how fish assemblages vary with elevation among regional elevation bands, and how these changes are related to four environmental clines and to changes in the distribution, habitat use, and the morphology of fish species. Using a standardized field sampling technique, we assessed three different diversity and two structural assemblage measures across six regional elevation bands located in the northern Andes (Colombia). Each species was assigned to a functional group based on its body shape, habitat use, morphological, and/or behavioral adaptations. Additionally, at each sampling site, we measured four environmental variables. Our analyses showed: (1) After a monotonic decrease in species richness, we detected an increase in richness in the upper part of the gradient; (2) diversity patterns vary depending on the diversity measure used; (3) diversity patterns can be attributed to changes in species distribution and in the richness and proportions of functional groups along the regional elevation gradient; and (4) diversity patterns and changes in functional groups are highly correlated with variations in environmental variables, which also vary with elevation. These results suggest a novel pattern of variation in species richness with elevation: Species richness increases at the headwaters of the northern Andes owing to the cumulative number of endemic species there. This highlights the need for large-scale studies and has important implications for the aquatic conservation of the region. PMID:26257874

Background-Source Cosmic-Photon Elevation Scaling and Cosmic-Neutron/Photon Date Scaling in MCNP6

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tutt, J.; Anderson, C.; McKinney, G.

Cosmic neutron and photon fluxes are known to scale exponentially with elevation. Consequently, cosmic neutron elevation scaling was implemented for use with the background-source option shortly after its introduction into MCNP6, whereby the neutron flux weight factor was adjusted by the elevation scaling factor when the user-specified elevation differed from the selected background.dat grid-point elevation. At the same time, an elevation scaling factor was suggested for the cosmic photon flux, however, cosmic photon elevation scaling is complicated by the fact that the photon background consists of two components: cosmic and terrestrial. Previous versions of the background.dat file did not provide any way to separate these components. With Rel. 4 of this file in 2015, two new columns were added that provide the energy grid and differential cosmic photon flux separately from the total photon flux. Here we show that the cosmic photon flux component can now be scaled independently and combined with the terrestrial component to form the total photon flux at a user-specified elevation in MCNP6. Cosmic background fluxes also scale with the solar cycle due to solar modulation. This modulation has been shown to be nearly sinusoidal over time, with an inverse effect - increased modulation leads to a decrease in cosmic fluxes. This effect was initially included with the cosmic source option in MCNP6 and has now been extended for use with the background source option when: (1) the date is specified in the background.dat file, and (2) when the user specifies a date on the source definition card. A description of the cosmic-neutron/photon date scaling feature will be presented along with scaling results for past and future date extrapolations.

Use of intraspecific variation in thermal responses for estimating an elevational cline in the timing of cold hardening in a sub-boreal conifer.

PubMed

Ishizuka, W; Ono, K; Hara, T; Goto, S

2015-01-01

To avoid winter frost damage, evergreen coniferous species develop cold hardiness with suitable phenology for the local climate regime. Along the elevational gradient, a genetic cline in autumn phenology is often recognised among coniferous populations, but further quantification of evolutionary adaptation related to the local environment and its responsible signals generating the phenological variation are poorly understood. We evaluated the timing of cold hardening among populations of Abies sachalinensis, based on time series freezing tests using trees derived from four seed source populations × three planting sites. Furthermore, we constructed a model to estimate the development of hardening from field temperatures and the intraspecific variations occurring during this process. An elevational cline was detected such that high-elevation populations developed cold hardiness earlier than low-elevation populations, representing significant genetic control. Because development occurred earlier at high-elevation planting sites, the genetic trend across elevation overlapped with the environmental trend. Based on the trade-off between later hardening to lengthen the active growth period and earlier hardening to avoid frost damage, this genetic cline would be adaptive to the local climate. Our modelling approach estimated intraspecific variation in two model components: the threshold temperature, which was the criterion for determining whether the trees accumulated the thermal value, and the chilling requirement for trees to achieve adequate cold hardiness. A higher threshold temperature and a lower chilling requirement could be responsible for the earlier phenology of the high-elevation population. These thermal responses may be one of the important factors driving the elevation-dependent adaptation of A. sachalinensis. © 2014 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

Carbohydrate metabolism in the subtending leaf cross-acclimates to waterlogging and elevated temperature stress and influences boll biomass in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum).

PubMed

Wang, Haimiao; Chen, Yinglong; Hu, Wei; Wang, Shanshan; Snider, John L; Zhou, Zhiguo

2017-11-01

Short-term waterlogging and chronic elevated temperature occur concomitantly in the cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) growing season. While previous research about co-occurring waterlogging and elevated temperature has focused primarily on cotton fiber, no studies have investigated carbohydrate metabolism of the subtending leaf (a major source leaf for boll development) cross-acclimation to aforementioned stressors. To address this, plants were exposed to ambient (31.6/26.5°C) and elevated (34.1/29.0°C) temperatures during the whole flowering and boll formation stage, and waterlogging (0, 3, 6 days) beginning on the day of anthesis. Both waterlogging and high temperature limited boll biomass (reduced by 1.19-32.14%), but effects of different durations of waterlogging coupled with elevated temperature on carbohydrate metabolism in the subtending leaf were quite different. The 6-day waterlogging combined with elevated temperature had the most negative impact on net photosynthetic rate (Pn) and carbohydrate metabolism of any treatment, leading to upregulated GhSusA and GhSusC expression and enhanced sucrose synthase (SuSy, EC 2.4.1.13) activity for sucrose degradation. A prior exposure to waterlogging for 3 days improved subtending leaf performance under elevated temperature. Pn, sucrose concentrations, Rubisco (EC 4.1.1.39) activity, and cytosolic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (cy-FBPase, EC 3.1.3.11) activity in the subtending leaf significantly increased, while SuSy activity decreased under 3 days waterlogging and elevated temperature combined relative to elevated temperature alone. Thus, we concluded that previous exposure to a brief (3 days) waterlogging stress improved sucrose composition and accumulation cross-acclimation to high temperature later in development not only by promoting leaf photosynthesis but also inhibiting sucrose degradation. © 2017 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

Growth at elevated ozone or elevated carbon dioxide concentration alters antioxidant capacity and response to acute oxidative stress in soybean (Glycine max)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gillespie, K.M.; Rogers, A.; Ainsworth, E. A.

2011-01-31

Soybeans (Glycine max Merr.) were grown at elevated carbon dioxide concentration ([CO{sub 2}]) or chronic elevated ozone concentration ([O{sub 3}]; 90 ppb), and then exposed to an acute O{sub 3} stress (200 ppb for 4 h) in order to test the hypothesis that the atmospheric environment alters the total antioxidant capacity of plants, and their capacity to respond to an acute oxidative stress. Total antioxidant metabolism, antioxidant enzyme activity, and antioxidant transcript abundance were characterized before, immediately after, and during recovery from the acute O{sub 3} treatment. Growth at chronic elevated [O{sub 3}] increased the total antioxidant capacity of plants,more » while growth at elevated [CO{sub 2}] decreased the total antioxidant capacity. Changes in total antioxidant capacity were matched by changes in ascorbate content, but not phenolic content. The growth environment significantly altered the pattern of antioxidant transcript and enzyme response to the acute O{sub 3} stress. Following the acute oxidative stress, there was an immediate transcriptional reprogramming that allowed for maintained or increased antioxidant enzyme activities in plants grown at elevated [O{sub 3}]. Growth at elevated [CO{sub 2}] appeared to increase the response of antioxidant enzymes to acute oxidative stress, but dampened and delayed the transcriptional response. These results provide evidence that the growth environment alters the antioxidant system, the immediate response to an acute oxidative stress, and the timing over which plants return to initial antioxidant levels. The results also indicate that future elevated [CO{sub 2}] and [O{sub 3}] will differentially affect the antioxidant system.« less

Elevated postvoid residual urine volume predicting recurrence of urinary tract infections in toilet-trained children.

PubMed

Chang, Shang-Jen; Tsai, Li-Ping; Hsu, Chun-Kai; Yang, Stephen S

2015-07-01

The aim of this study was to examine whether toilet-trained children with a history of febrile urinary tract infection (fUTI) and elevated postvoid residual (PVR) urine volume according to a recently published PVR nomogram were at greater risk of UTI recurrence. One month after recovery from febrile UTI, constipation was diagnosed according to the Rome III criteria, and lower urinary tract (LUT) function was evaluated with two sets of uroflowmetry and PVR by ultrasonography. For children aged ≦ 6 and ≧ 7 years, elevated PVR is defined as >20 and >10 ml, respectively. Cox proportion hazards regression was used to evaluate the risk factors for recurrence of UTI. Between 2005 and 2011, 60 children aged 6.5 ± 2.5 years (boy:girl ratio 27:33) were enrolled for analysis. Univariate analysis showed that recurrent febrile UTI was more commonly observed in children with elevated PVR [repetitive elevated PVR: hazard ratio (HR) 5.75, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.41-23.4; one elevated PVR: HR 4.53, 95% CI 1.01-20.2] and high-grade vesicoureteral reflux (VUR; HR 4.53, 95% CI 1.46-14.07). Multivariate analysis showed that younger age (HR 1.37, 95% CI 1.03-1.82, p < 0.01) and elevated PVR (HR 2.88, 95% CI 1.44-5.73, p = 0.01) were significant, independent risk factors for recurrent febrile UTI--but not gender, presence of high-grade VUR and constipation. Elevated PVR defined by the new PVR nomogram predicted recurrent UTI in children with history of febrile UTI. Care should be taken to manage children with elevated PVR.

Coffee consumption is associated with lower serum aminotransferases in the general Korean population and in those at high risk for hepatic disease.

PubMed

Oh, Myueng Guen; Han, Mi Ah; Kim, Man Woo; Park, Chan Guk; Kim, Young Dae; Lee, Jun

2016-12-01

The favourable effects of coffee on liver enzymes have been reported worldwide. This study investigated the association between coffee consumption and serum aminotransferase concentration in Korean adults. Data were obtained from the fourth and fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) concentration were defined as >30 IU/L for men and >19 IU/L for women. The risk of elevated ALT and AST according to general characteristics and frequency of coffee consumption were tested by chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression analyses. The prevalence of elevated ALT was 27.4%, 27.8%, and 26.9% in subjects who drank <1, 1, and >=2 times/day, respectively. The proportions of individuals with elevated AST were 32.5%, 33.1%, and 26.7% in subjects who drank <1, 1, and >=2 times/day, respectively. The aORs for elevated ALT and AST were significantly lower in subjects who drank >=2 times of coffee/day than in those who drank <1 time/day (ALT: aOR=0.86, 95% CI=0.79-0.94; AST: aOR=0.83, 95% CI=0.76-0.91). In subgroup analysis, consumption of >=2 times/day was associated with lower ORs for elevated ALT in the high-risk group overall and in the viral hepatitis and obesity subgroups, respectively. In sensitivity analysis, reduced frequency of coffee consumption was associated with an increased risk for elevated liver enzymes, although an association between coffee consumption and elevated ALT was not observed in women or current smokers. Higher coffee consumption was associated with lower risk of elevated aminotransferase concentration in Korean adults.

A randomised controlled trial of the effect of a head-elevation pillow on intrathecal local anaesthetic spread in caesarean section.

PubMed

Elfil, H; Crowley, L; Segurado, R; Spring, A

2015-11-01

A head-elevation pillow places a patient in a ramped posture, which maximises the view of the larynx during laryngoscopy, particularly in obese parturients. In our institution an elevation pillow is used pre-emptively for neuraxial anaesthesia. We hypothesised that head-elevation may impair cephalad spread of local anaesthetic before caesarean section resulting in a lower block or longer time to achieve a T6 level. We aimed to investigate the effect of head-elevation on spread of intrathecal local anaesthetics during anaesthesia for caesarean section. One-hundred parturients presenting for caesarean section under combined spinal-epidural anaesthesia were randomised to either the standard supine position with lateral displacement or in the supine position with lateral displacement on an head-elevation pillow. Each patient received intrathecal hyperbaric bupivacaine 11 mg, morphine 100 μg and fentanyl 15 μg. Patients were assessed for adequacy of sensory block (T6 or higher) at 10 min. Sensory block to T6 was achieved within 10 min in 65.9% of parturients in the Elevation Pillow Group compared to 95.7% in the Control Group (P<0.05). Compared to the Control Group, patients in the Elevation Pillow Group had greater requirements for epidural supplementation (43.5% vs 2.1%, P<0.001) or conversion to general anaesthesia (9.3% vs 0%, P<0.04). Use of a ramped position with an head-elevation pillow following injection of the intrathecal component of a combined spinal-epidural anaesthetic for scheduled caesarean section was associated with a significantly lower block height at 10min. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The same but different: equally megadiverse but taxonomically variant spider communities along an elevational gradient

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malumbres-Olarte, Jagoba; Crespo, Luís; Cardoso, Pedro; Szűts, Tamás; Fannes, Wouter; Pape, Thomas; Scharff, Nikolaj

2018-04-01

Spatial variation in biodiversity is one of the key pieces of information for the delimitation and prioritisation of protected areas. This information is especially important when the protected area includes different climatic and habitat conditions and communities, such as those along elevational gradients. Here we test whether the megadiverse communities of spiders along an elevational gradient change according to two diversity models - a monotonic decrease or a hump-shaped pattern in species richness. We also measure compositional variation along and within elevations, and test the role of the preference of microhabitat (vegetation strata) and the functional (guild) structure of species in the changes. We sampled multiple spider communities using standardised and optimised sampling in three forest types, each at a different elevation along a climatic gradient. The elevational transects were at increasing horizontal distances (between 0.1 and 175 km) in the Udzungwa Mountains, Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania. The number of species was similar between plots and forest types, and therefore the pattern did not match either diversity model. However, species composition changed significantly with a gradual change along elevations. Although the number of species per microhabitat and guild also remained similar across elevations, the number of individuals varied, e.g. at higher elevations low canopy vegetation was inhabited by more spiders, and the spiders belonging to guilds that typically use this microhabitat were more abundant. Our findings reflex the complex effects of habitat-microhabitat interactions on spider communities at the individual, species and guild levels. If we aim to understand and conserve some of the most diverse communities in the world, researchers and managers may need to place more attention to small scale and microhabitat characteristics upon which communities depend.

Effects of elevated [CO2] on maize defence against mycotoxigenic Fusarium verticillioides

PubMed Central

Vaughan, Martha M; Huffaker, Alisa; Schmelz, Eric A; Dafoe, Nicole J; Christensen, Shawn; Sims, James; Martins, Vitor F; Swerbilow, Jay; Romero, Maritza; Alborn, Hans T; Allen, Leon HARTWELL; Teal, Peter EA

2014-01-01

Maize is by quantity the most important C4 cereal crop; however, future climate changes are expected to increase maize susceptibility to mycotoxigenic fungal pathogens and reduce productivity. While rising atmospheric [CO2] is a driving force behind the warmer temperatures and drought, which aggravate fungal disease and mycotoxin accumulation, our understanding of how elevated [CO2] will effect maize defences against such pathogens is limited. Here we report that elevated [CO2] increases maize susceptibility to Fusarium verticillioides proliferation, while mycotoxin levels are unaltered. Fumonisin production is not proportional to the increase in F. verticillioides biomass, and the amount of fumonisin produced per unit pathogen is reduced at elevated [CO2]. Following F. verticillioides stalk inoculation, the accumulation of sugars, free fatty acids, lipoxygenase (LOX) transcripts, phytohormones and downstream phytoalexins is dampened in maize grown at elevated [CO2]. The attenuation of maize 13-LOXs and jasmonic acid production correlates with reduced terpenoid phytoalexins and increased susceptibility. Furthermore, the attenuated induction of 9-LOXs, which have been suggested to stimulate mycotoxin biosynthesis, is consistent with reduced fumonisin per unit fungal biomass at elevated [CO2]. Our findings suggest that elevated [CO2] will compromise maize LOX-dependent signalling, which will influence the interactions between maize and mycotoxigenic fungi. Elevated [CO2] increases maize susceptibility to Fusarium verticillioides proliferation but mycotoxin levels are unaltered. The attenuation of maize 13-LOXs and JA production correlates with reduced terpenoid phytoalexins and increased susceptibility. Furthermore, the attenuated induction of 9-LOXs, which have been suggested to stimulate mycotoxin biosynthesis, is consistent with reduced fumonisin per unit fungal biomass at elevated [CO2]. PMID:24689748

Changes in highly sensitive alpha-fetoprotein for the prediction of the outcome in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after hepatectomy.

PubMed

Toyoda, Hidenori; Kumada, Takashi; Tada, Toshifumi; Ito, Takanori; Maeda, Atsuyuki; Kaneoka, Yuji; Kagebayashi, Chiaki; Satomura, Shinji

2014-06-01

We investigated changes in highly sensitive lens culinaris agglutinin A-reactive fraction of alpha-fetoprotein (hsAFP-L3) measured using a novel method and its predictive ability for prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who underwent curative hepatectomy, comparing to other HCC tumor markers, that is, AFP, des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP), and AFP-L3 measured with conventional method (cAFP-L3). AFP, DCP, and AFP-L3 including both cAFP-L3 and hsAFP-L3 were measured before and after curative hepatectomy in 187 patients. The percentage of patients with elevated tumor marker levels pre- and postoperatively was compared, and recurrence-free and overall survival rates were analyzed based on changes in tumor markers. The percentages of patients with elevated AFP, DCP, and cAFP-L3 decreased postoperatively. In contrast, the percentage of patients with elevated hsAFP-L3 did not decrease postoperatively. Both recurrence-free and overall survival rates were significantly lower in patients whose tumor marker levels remained elevated postoperatively than patients without tumor marker elevation postoperatively. Recurrence-free and overall survival rates of patients in whom hsAFP-L3 became elevated postoperatively despite normal preoperative hsAFP-L3 levels were significantly lower than those of patients with normal hsAFP-L3 postoperatively, and were similar to those of patients with persistent elevation. Preoperative elevations of AFP, DCP, and cAFP normalized in many patients postoperatively, but not for hsAFP-L3. The elevation of hsAFP-L3 identifies patients with poor prognosis despite the normalization of AFP and DCP. © 2014 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.