Average Expansion Rate Research Articles

Evaluating water balance components in a tropical ecological zone under land use changes

Water availability for domestic, institutional, and agricultural production is threatened by the continuous change in land use land cover (LULC). These changes in LULC features affect the dynamics of the hydrological processes such as surface runoff, infiltration, and evapotranspiration, resulting in variations in water availability especially, for human consumption and crop yield. Therefore, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrological model was deployed to simulate the Pra River Basin (PRB)’s water balance response to changing LULC from 1986 to 2020. Open and closed forests reduced from an area of 11,071 km2 to 5902 km2 and 5125 km2 to 4990 km2 while settlement and cropland increased from 1100 km2 to 2392 km2 and 5303 km2 to 9320 km2 representing an average annual expansion rate of +24.7 km2/yr and +118 km2/yr respectively over the three decades. The growth in settlement and cropland resulted in an upsurge of more than 33 % and 20 % in surface runoff and water yield respectively, but decreases of over 4 % and 17 % in evapotranspiration and baseflow respectively. These changes have resulted in a seasonal increase in surface runoff, baseflow, and evapotranspiration (ET) during the wet season but a decrease during the dry season. The PRB has experienced a dramatic decline in forest areas, chiefly in areas where settlement and farmlands have been expanded. The areas where surface runoff and water yield showed significant upsurge and reduction in ET are the northwestern and southern enclaves of the basin. These findings can aid in effectively planning and managing land use to control the gradually depleting water resources in the basin.

Increase in per capita cropland imbalance across countries from 1985 to 2022: A threat to achieving Sustainable Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2, zero hunger) highlights that global hunger and food insecurity have worsened since 2015, driven in part by growing imbalance. Addressing the challenge of achieving SDG 2 in the face of rapid global population growth requires sustained attention to global and national cropland changes. Accurately quantifying the correlation between population and cropland area (i.e., SDG 2.4.1 per capita cropland) and analyzing the trends of global cropland imbalance are essential for a comprehensive understanding of SDG 2. In this study, we utilized a new global 30 m land-cover dynamic dataset (GLC_FCS30D) to analyze cropland dynamics, quantify per capita cropland and its changes across various countries and levels of development. Our results indicate that the global cropland area expanded by 0.944 million km2 from 1985 to 2022, with an average expansion rate of 2.42 × 104 km2/yr. However, the global per capita cropland area decreased from 0.347 ha in 1985 to 0.217 ha in 2022, mainly due to a higher population increase of nearly 65% in the same period. In the context of globalization, cropland expansion and per capita cropland exhibited spatial imbalances globally, particularly in developing countries. Developing countries saw an increase in total cropland area by 7.09% but a significant decrease in per capita cropland area by 37.38%. From a temporal perspective, the global imbalance has been steadily increasing with the Gini index rising from 0.895 in 1985 to 0.909 in 2022. Consequently, this study reveals an increasing imbalance across various countries, which threatens the attainment of the targets of SDG 2.

Expansion of Naturally Grown Phyllostachys edulis (Carrière) J. Houzeau Forests into Diverse Habitats: Rates and Driving Factors

Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis (Carrière) J. Houzeau), which is native to China, is considered to be an invasive species due to its powerful asexual reproductive capabilities that allow it to rapidly spread into neighboring ecosystems and replace existing plant communities. In the absence of human intervention, it remains poorly understood how indigenous moso bamboo forests naturally expand into surrounding areas over the long term, and whether these patterns vary with environmental changes. Using multi-year forest resource inventory data, we extracted moso bamboo patches that emerged from 2010 to 2020 and proposed a bamboo expansion index to calculate the average rate of patch expansion during this period. Using the first global 30 m land-cover dynamic monitoring product with a fine classification system, we assessed the expansion speeds of moso bamboo into various areas, particularly forests with different canopy closures and categories. Using parameter-optimized geographic detectors, we explored the significance of multi-factors in the expansion process. The results indicate that the average expansion rate of moso bamboo forests in China is 1.36 m/y, with evergreen broadleaved forests being the primary area for invasion. Moso bamboo expands faster into open forest types (0.15 < canopy closure < 0.4), shrublands, and grasslands. The importance of factors influencing the expansion rate is ranked as follows: temperature > chemical properties of soil > light > physical properties of soil > moisture > atmosphere > terrain. When considering interactions, the primary factors contributing to expansion rates include various climate factors and the combined effect of climate factors and soil factors. Our work underscores the importance of improving the quality and density of native vegetation, such as evergreen broadleaved forests. Effective management strategies, including systematic monitoring of environmental variables, as well as targeted interventions like bamboo removal and soil moisture control, are essential for mitigating the invasion of moso bamboo.

A Three-Dimensional Morphological Assessment for Evaluating Pre- and Postsurgery in Cervical Laminoplasty

ObjectiveThe efficacy of medical treatments and the changes in radiological imaging before and after treatment have consistently remained pivotal factors. This is particularly critical for surgical procedures, where precise evaluation of disparities pre- and post-surgery or the accuracy of implantation is paramount. Based on three-dimensional morphological interests, we provide an automatic quantification evaluation method that delivers an evident base for assessing the outcomes of a widely employed surgical technique, cervical laminoplasty. MethodsThe sample study included patients who underwent cervical laminoplasty for cervical spondylotic myelopathy/ossification of the longitudinal ligament. We present a superimposition method that facilitates a unique and precise assessment between pre and post-surgery. The degree of expansion was evaluated by the canal volume increase and canal expansion rate after surgery. ResultsThere were 31 patients with 112 vertebral segments measured. The target cervical's pre- and post-operative canal areas were 122.63 ± 30.34 and 196.50 ± 37.10 mm2, respectively (P < 0.001). The average cervical canal expansion rate was 64.42%. The expansion effect of C5 cervical laminoplasty was the maximum (71.01%), and the canal volume of other segments expanded by approximately 60%. The functional outcomes demonstrated significant improvements in symptoms. ConclusionsThe quantification evaluation method can be utilized for any morphology changes before and after laminoplasty, as it does not lead to errors or variations from different inspection machines or human factors. The automatic method delivers an evident base for assessing the outcomes of a widely employed surgical technique.

Admissibility and mean hyperbolicity for evolution equations

Mean hyperbolic systems permit non-hyperbolic behavior at certain moments during the evolution process T(t,s), owing to non-fixed error hyperbolic degree ε(t,s). Despite the coexistence of compression and expansion behaviors in generalized stable and unstable subspaces, mean hyperbolic systems admit fixed average contraction and expansion rates measured at sufficiently long time. To discuss the relationship between admissibility and mean hyperbolicity for evolution equations, our main goal is to construct admissible function classes and invariant decomposition with generalized stable and unstable subspaces. As applications, the mean hyperbolicity of damped wave equations with variable coefficients and the roughness of mean hyperbolicity are presented.

Time-lapse imaging of morula compaction for selecting high-quality blastocysts: a retrospective cohort study.

Before blastocyst development, embryos undergo morphological and metabolic changes crucial for their subsequent growth. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between morula compaction and blastocyst formation and the subsequent chromosomal status of the embryos. This retrospective cohort study evaluated embryo development (n = 371) using time-lapse imaging; 94 blastocysts underwent preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A). The embryos were classified as fully (Group 1, n = 194) or partially (Group 2, n = 177) compacted. Group 1 had significantly higher proportions of good- and average-quality blastocysts than Group 2 (21.6% vs. 3.4%, p = 0.001; 47.9% vs. 26.6%, p = 0.001, respectively). The time from the morula stage to the beginning and completion of compaction and blastocyst formation was significantly shorter in Group 1 than in Group 2 (78.6 vs. 82.4h, p = 0.001; 87.0 vs. 92.2h, p = 0.001; 100.2 vs. 103.7h, p = 0.017, respectively). Group 1 embryos had larger surface areas than Group 2 embryos at various time points following blastocyst formation. Group 1 blastocysts had significantly higher average expansion rates than Group 2 blastocysts (653.6 vs. 499.2μm2/h, p = 0.001). PGT-A revealed a higher proportion of euploid embryos in Group 1 than in Group 2 (47.2% vs. 36.6%, p = 0.303). Time-lapse microscopy uncovered a positive relationship between compaction and blastocyst quality and its association with embryo ploidy. Hence, compaction evaluation should be prioritized before blastocyst selection for transfer or cryopreservation.

Back-reaction of long-wavelength cosmological fluctuations as measured by a clock field

We consider the back-reaction of cosmological fluctuations on the local expansion rate averaged over a space-like hypersurface of constant value of a clock field. We show that in the infrared limit, the fluctuations lead to a decrease in the average expansion rate, measured at a fixed value of the clock field, compared to what would be obtained in a homogeneous universe. We work in the context of Einstein gravity coupled to perfect fluid matter.

Influences of removable gas injection methods on the temperature field and gas composition of the underground coal gasification process

In this paper, the effects of changing the injection position of a gasification agent on temperature fields and gas compositions are investigated through an experimental model of the underground gasification of coaxial coal. A 3D model of the temperature field is constructed based on the experimental temperature parameters using kriging interpolation; the 900 °C isothermal surface is used as the reference plane to define the oxidation zone, and its plane and volume expansion rate are analyzed. The underground coal gasification experiment is divided into five stages according to the injection location. The average expansion rates of the oxidation zone in each stage are 2.04 cm/h, 1.93 cm/h, 3.44 cm/h, 3.68 cm/h, and 3 cm/h along the X-direction and 0.69 cm/h, 0.09 cm/h, 0.56 cm/h, 1.69 cm/h, and 1.01 cm/h along the Z-direction; the expansion rate along the X-direction is greater than that along the Z-direction. The expansion volumes of the oxidation zone after the five stages increase from 0.0097 m3 to 0.0168 m3, 0.0321 m3, 0.0521 m3 and 0.0657 m3. An analysis of the expanded volume of the oxidation zone compared with the volume of the cavity shows that both features are similar in shape and that the final volume of the cavity is smaller than the final expanded volume of the oxidation zone; the volume of the cavity is approximately 77.3 % of the expanded volume of the oxidation zone. The formation of a cavity requires the temperature to reach the conditions for the oxidation reaction of the coal and the rupture and flaking of the ash layer that accumulates after the reaction by the actions of certain stresses, such as thermal. The composition of the product gas and the strength of the chemical reactions involved are evaluated based on stoichiometric conservation. A short period after a shift in the injection position of the gasifier greatly impacts the chemical equilibrium of the UCG process with a large change in the strength of the chemical reaction, followed by a relatively small change when the gasification process stabilizes.

Impact of water supply on the restoration of the severely damaged riparian plants along the Tarim River in Xinjiang, Northwest China

Restoring degraded ecosystems in drylands is challenging because of low precipitation and high evapotranspiration. Water availability determines the existence and spatiotemporal distribution patterns of key endangered species struggling to survive in the severely damaged desert riparian ecosystem of the lower Tarim River (LTR) in NW China. Ecological water flow restoration measures with high costs and uncertainties have been implemented since 2000. The key task for scientists is to assess the success and drawbacks of this restoration project and propose specific recommendations for stakeholders to optimize the ecological benefits of the project in a cost-effective manner. In this study, Landsat time-series data from 1990 to 2020 were used to extract vegetation index values from river corridors along the LTR and explore the spatiotemporal patterns of desert riparian forest (DRF) vegetation. Based on land use and surface water data, we extracted the interannual spatial distribution range of vegetation and surface water, and selected several sample plots to demonstrate the influence of surface water and groundwater on vegetation change trends. The study results showed the following. 1) From 1990 to 1999, the vegetation slowly degraded; from 2000 to 2012, the extent of vegetation restoration was approximately 1 km from the river; and from 2013 to 2020, the extent of vegetation restoration at the Yingsu and Karday sections increased to 4.5–6.0 km, while that at the Arghan and Yiganbujima sections remained within 1 km from the river. 2) The vegetation growth rate increased substantially and was spatially heterogeneous when the groundwater level reached 4.0–5.0 m and was influenced by surface water divergence; the average vegetation expansion rates per square km for P1–P4 were 0.017 km2/a, 0.011 km2/a, 0.005 km2/a, and 0.002 km2/a, respectively. 3) Flooding by surface water was the main driver of vegetation expansion when groundwater was stable and elevations in surface vegetation area were often accompanied by the spreading of surface water. Surface water was significantly correlated with vegetation cover and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (Water pixels–Vegetation cover [P1: R2 = 0.57, P < 0.001; P2: R2 = 0.45, P < 0.01]; Water pixels–NDVI [P1: R2 = 0.22, P < 0.05; P2: R2 = 0.40, P < 0.01]). The increase in surface vegetation has alleviated the desertification process in the LTR, and the survival of the poplar has been mitigated. The results of this paper can help decision makers to formulate reasonable ecological water conveyance strategies and realize sustainable management of DRF ecosystems in arid zones.

Study on Spatial and Temporal Characteristics of Construction Land Expansion in Hohhot City Center, 1992-2022

Based on CLCD LULC data, this paper uses the ArcGIS 10.8 platform to analyze spatial data and discusses the expansion rate, expansion intensity, expansion direction, expansion type, and land use structure changes of construction land in Hohhot. The results show that the construction land area of Hohhot increased from 103.02 square kilometers in 1992 to 343.41 square kilometers in 2022, with an average annual expansion rate of 7.75 square kilometers and an expansion intensity index of 7.53. The city's expansion shows a staged character, with 2002 to 2012 as the period of rapid expansion. The direction of expansion is mainly concentrated in the northeast, southeast, east, and southwest directions, which is closely related to the city's economic development, natural conditions, and planning control. In terms of expansion types, infill expansion has dominated from 1992 to 2002, while marginal expansion has dominated from 2002 to 2012 and from 2012 to 2022. The land use structure has changed significantly, with a significant decrease in the area of arable land and grassland, a continuous increase in the area of construction land, and a slight increase in the area of forested land. During the 30 years, 242.51 square kilometers of land of various types have been converted into construction land, with arable land being the most converted, accounting for 71.51% of the total amount of converted land. The study concludes that urban land expansion in Hohhot is characterized by obvious spatial and temporal differences and phases, and strict land management methods need to be implemented to ensure the rationality and sustainability of land use. At the same time, arable land and the ecological environment damaged by urban expansion should be protected and restored through ecological compensation mechanisms.

A MapReduce-based approach to social network big data mining

The rapid development of social networks has facilitated the convenience of users to receive information. As a network communication platform for people’s daily use, microblog has countless information data. In view of the low efficiency and poor clustering effect of K-means algorithm, a parallel K-means clustering algorithm based on MapReduce model is studied; In order to alleviate the difficulty in calculating the similarity of microblog topic text, the space vector model and semantic similarity are used to calculate the similarity between texts to improve the quality of microblog text classification. The data expansion rate of corresponding nodes under different data sets shows that the average expansion rate of the parallel K-means algorithm reaches 0.89, and the running rate is the highest. The results show that the parallel K-means algorithm has good clustering stability and the highest clustering quality, reaching 1.24; The clustering time of the algorithm is the shortest, the average clustering time is 1.27 minutes, and the clustering effect and efficiency of the algorithm are the best. In the quality analysis of Weibo topic recommendation, the accuracy of P-K-means recommendation is 95.64%, user satisfaction is 98.64%, and the recommendation effect is also the best. It shows that the research on the parallel K-means clustering algorithm based on MapReduce has the best performance in microblogging topic mining and recommendation, which can efficiently recommend topics of interest to users and enhance users’ microblogging experience.

Comparative analysis of the expansion rate and soil erodibility factor of some gullies in Nnewi and Nnobi, Southeastern Nigeria

The research focused on assessing the expansion rate and soil erodibility factor (K) of specific gullies located in Nnewi and Nnobi, Southeastern Nigeria. Fifteen representative gullies were studied extensively. The Grain size distribution analysis revealed that the soils are composed of gravel (5.77–17.67% and 7.01–13.65%), sand (79.90–91.01% and 82.47–88.67%), and fines (2.36–4.05% and 3.78–5.02%) for Nnewi and Nnobi respectively. The cohesion and internal friction angle values range from 1–5 to 2–5 kPa and from 29–38° to 30–34° for Nnewi and Nnobi respectively, which suggests that the soils have low shear strength and are susceptible to shear failure. The plasticity index (PI) of the fines showed that they are nonplastic to low plastic soils and highly liquefiable with values ranging from 0–10 to 0–9% for Nnewi and Nnobi respectively. Slope stability analysis gave factor of safety (FoS) values in the range of 0.50–0.76 and 0.82–0.95 for saturated condition and 0.73–0.98 and 0.87–1.04 for unsaturated condition for both Nnewi and Nnobi respectively indicating that the slopes are generally unstable to critically stable. The erosion expansion rate analysis for a fifteen-year period (2005–2020) revealed an average longitudinal expansion rate of 36.05 m/yr and 10.76 m/yr for Nnewi and Nnobi gullies respectively. The soil erodibility factor (K) are 8.57 × 10−2 and 1.62 × 10−4 for Nnewi and Nnobi respectively indicating that the soils in Nnewi have higher erodibility potentials than those of Nnobi. Conclusively, the Nnewi area is more prone to erosion than the Nnobi area.

Rice Self-Sufficiency Model to Enhance the Food Security Status in Nepal

The study focuses on the slow growth of rice production in Nepal and the country's heavy reliance on rice imports to meet its food demand. The government has been spending a significant portion of its budget on imports, and it aims to reduce this dependence by increasing domestic production and achieving food security goals. To understand the dynamics of this issue, system dynamics modelling steps were employed. The key variables considered in the model testing were domestic production, imports, per capita consumption, productivity per hectare, and average area expansion rate. The study utilized time series data from 1991 to 2020 and projected the analysis up to 2050 using Stella Architect, a computer-based software program. The findings reveal that both the population and imports have exhibited exponential growth over the years. The model also indicates goal-seeking behaviour, with the government setting targets for yield increment based on available harvest areas. However, the policies implemented thus far have mostly been quick-fix approaches focusing input subsidized programs. According to the model, an increase of 70-100% in rice production will be required by 2050 to meet the growing population's demand. The study presents three policy options for achieving rice self-sufficiency: 1) a 2% annual increase in average area expansion, 2) raising productivity from 3700 kg ha-1 to 5000 kg ha-1 and 3) increasing productivity to 3900 kg ha-1 while reducing per capita rice consumption from 200 kg to 130 kg. The study suggests that adopting the recommended policy implications can help increase rice production in Nepal. Decision-makers should adopt a dynamic approach to the rice production system to address the issue of slow growth and achieve national self-sufficiency and food security goals.

Peculiarities of radial velocity variability of lines in the spectrum of α Cyg supergiant

ABSTRACT We use about 430 CCD spectra obtained in 1998–2001 and in 2007 to study temporal radial velocity variations of the ion, He i, and H β lines in the spectrum of the α Cyg. We found that these variations are caused by pulsation-type motions. In case of the ion and He i lines, fluctuations occur in the fundamental radial mode with the period of about 12.5 ± 1.0 d and the amplitude of 5.0 ± 0.5 km s−1. The oscillation lasts about ∼34 ± 1 d. In the case of the H β line the radial velocity variability was studied separately for the blue and red halves of the line profile. Such a methodical approach allowed to discover three characteristic cases of radial velocity variability for the blue and red halves of the H β line profile. In 1999 and 2001, the period P and amplitude A variability parameters are the same for the blue and red halves, and hence for the line bisector too. In 1998, P and A are the same for the blue and red halves of the profile, however, there is a phase shift between the fluctuations of their radial velocity by 0.6P. In 2000, P and A are different for the two halves of the line profile. Relative to the center of the star’s mass, the average expansion rate for the atmospheric layers, where the H β line is formed, is about −10.0 km s−1. It varies over time with a semi-amplitude of around ±3.3 km s−1.

P-261 Embryo compaction based on time-lapse imaging is a valuable parameter for selecting blastocysts with the highest developmental potency and associated with a ploidy state

Abstract Study question Does embryo compaction positively correlate with blastocyst development and further embryonic ploidy status? Summary answer Fully compacted embryos develop into good-quality blastocysts, have shorter developmental times, and are related to ploidy status. What is known already To succeed in assisted reproduction technique (ART), it is necessary to select embryos that have the highest potential. So, numerous studies make an effort to establish parameters for selecting embryos. A Time-lapse system (TLS) allows embryologists to understand dynamic embryo change through continuous monitoring. In development, embryos undergo dynamic functional changes during compaction, which play a crucial role in blastocyst formation. It is also known that embryonic genome activation can be seen with compaction. Incomplete compaction leads to blastocyst developmental failure. Nevertheless, the details about the compaction of human embryos have not been paid sufficient attention, so still rarely known. Study design, size, duration This was a retrospective cohort study including couples that underwent an IVF cycle at the CHA Fertility Center, Gangnam, between January 2019 to October 2022. A total of 371 reached the blastocyst from 113 patients cultured in the TLS were analyzed. Among these, 94 blastocysts were analyzed by preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A). Statistical analysis was performed by prism9 using a t-test and chi-square test. P values &amp;lt;0.05 were regarded as statistically significant. Participants/materials, setting, methods Embryos were classified into two categories by compaction pattern: fully compacted (Group1, N = 194) and partially compacted (Group2, N = 177). Blastocyst quality was determined by morphology and divided into three groups (Good, Average, and Poor). The developmental time ranging from morula to blastocyst was annotated based on the embryo scope image. The surface of the blastocyst was measured every hour starting at blastocyst formation (tB) by using the ellipse tool of the Embryo Viewer software. Main results and the role of chance Good and average quality blastocysts are significantly higher in Group 1 than in Group 2 (21.6% vs. 3.4%, p &amp;lt; 0.01; 47.9% vs. 26.6%, p &amp;lt; 0.01, respectively). In contrast, poor-quality blastocysts are lower in Group 1 than in Group 2 (30.4% vs. 70.1%, p &amp;lt; 0.01). The beginning and completion of compaction, and blastocyst formation times of embryos from Group 1 were significantly shorter than those of embryos that Group 2(78.6h vs. 82.4, p &amp;lt; 0.01; 87.0h vs. 92.2h, p &amp;lt; 0.01; 100.2h vs. 103.7, p &amp;lt; 0.01, respectively). Also, there is a significant difference in longitudinal surface area at 3, 6, and 12h from the time of tB between the two groups. Consequently, the average expansion rate in Group 1 was significantly faster than in Group 2 (653.6 μm2/hour vs. 499.2μm2/hour, p &amp;lt; 0.05). According to the result of PGT-A, Group 1 had statistically significantly higher euploid and lower aneuploidy rates compared to Group 2 (47.2% vs. 36.2%, p &amp;lt; 0.001; 52.8% vs. 63.8%, p &amp;lt; 0.001, respectively). However, in the PGT-A group, there was no significant difference in developmental time between the two groups, regardless of fully or partial compaction. Meanwhile, the average expansion rate in euploidy blastocyst was significantly faster than in aneuploidy blastocyst (747.8 μm2/hour vs. 564.3 μm2/hour, p &amp;lt; 0.05). Limitations, reasons for caution The main limitation is the single-center retrospective approach. Therefore future prospective research is needed to verify and extend our findings. Another one, in the PGT-A there was no difference in developmental time regardless of fully or partially compaction. The reason is that we selected blastocysts of sufficient quality for biopsy. Wider implications of the findings Using the TLS, we have observed the dynamics of compaction in detail. We found a positive relationship between compaction and blastocyst quality and its association with embryo ploidy. The assessment of compaction is a significant parameter for predicting competent embryos and should be given priority when selecting blastocysts. Trial registration number Not applicable

Spatio-Temporal Evolution of Inland Lakes and Their Relationship with Hydro-Meteorological Factors in Horqin Sandy Land, China

In the inland closed area of Horqin Sandy Land, China, lakes are the most important source of water, and they maintain the regional hydrological balance and ecosystem health. Clarifying long-term continuous changes of inland lake surface area and water storage in the sandy land is thus of great significance to the management of water resources in arid and semi-arid areas. This study estimated changes in the surface area and water storage of small lakes in the sandy land during 1984–2021 using a multiple index threshold method and an empirical equation based on Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM (digital elevation model) data and Landsat 5/7/8 images. Hydro-meteorological variables were also incorporated to explore their potential relationship with changes in the lake elements. The lakes in the sandy land resemble stars or dots, with distinct inhomogeneity. Permanent lakes account for the majority of the total lake area, mostly distributed in the center and east of the study area, whereas most seasonal lakes are small water bodies, with surface areas of 0.1–0.5 km2 and irregularly distributed. Lake surface area and water storage underwent frequent changes during the 38 years, and could be divided into three characteristic fluctuation phases. From 1984 to 1999, the lake surface area fluctuated greatly, and the water storage increased by approximately 0.3732 Gt, with an average expansion rate of 0.0572 Gt/y. Specifically, lakes with a surface area &gt;2 km2 primarily accounted for the expansion. From 1999 to 2004, the lake area shrank sharply to the lowest point, and the water storage capacity decreased by approximately 0.4003 Gt. From 2004 to 2021, the lake surface area and water storage tended to be stable. Annual fluctuations of lake surface area and water storage were mostly affected by precipitation and evapotranspiration, followed by vapor pressure deficit, wet day frequency, and temperature, which have significant periodicity and hysteresis.

Plasmasphere Refilling after the 1 June 2013 Geomagnetic Storm

Plasma content and distribution are key parameters in the dynamics of the inner magnetosphere. The plasmasphere contributes, for the most part, to the plasma mass density, and its properties are very dependent on the history of the magnetosphere and geomagnetic activity. In this work, we investigated plasmasphere dynamics and plasmasphere–ionosphere coupling, focusing on the refilling process that followed the geomagnetic storm that occurred on 1 June 2013. The equatorial plasma mass density used to evaluate the refilling rates was remotely sensed by observation of the field line resonance (FLR) frequencies of the geomagnetic field, driven by ultra-low-frequency magnetic waves. The FLR frequencies were retrieved by performing an analysis of signals detected by several station pairs of the European quasi-Meridional Magnetometer Array. We estimated the rate at which the refilling process occurred, concentrating on both the diurnal and the day-to-day refilling rates. The estimated contraction rate during the main phase of the storm was higher than ∼3.5 REd−1, while the average expansion rate was ∼0.4 REd−1. We investigated the radial dependence of the refilling rates, using a novel approach based on fit plasma mass density profiles, and we related their variation to the plasmasphere boundary layer and the zero-energy Alfvén boundary. We found evidence supporting the idea that flux tubes mapping in the region between these two boundaries experience an enhanced refilling process.

Past-completeness of inflationary spacetimes

We discuss the question of whether or not inflationary spacetimes can be geodesically complete in the infinite past. Geodesic completeness is a necessary condition for averting an initial singularity during eternal inflation. It is frequently argued that cosmological models which are expanding sufficiently fast (having average Hubble expansion rate $H_{avg}>0$) must be incomplete in null and timelike past directions. This well-known conjecture relies on specific bounds on the integral of the Hubble parameter over a past-directed timelike or null geodesic. As stated, we show this claim is an open issue. We show that the calculation of $H_{avg}$ yields a continuum of results for a given spacetime predicated upon the underlying topological assumptions. We present an improved definition for $H_{avg}$ and introduce an uncountably infinite cohort of cosmological solutions which are geodesically complete despite having $H_{avg}>0$. We discuss a standardized definition for inflationary spacetimes as well as quantum (semi-classical) cosmological concerns over physically reasonable scale factors.

Determinants Of The Instability Of The Russian Economic Growth

Based on a detailed comparative analysis of the concepts of &amp;quot;economic growth&amp;quot; and &amp;quot;economic development&amp;quot;, the article provides arguments in favor of the thesis that from the post-default period to the present day, the Russian economy demonstrates not only steadily fading average annual GDP expansion rates, but also the so-called &amp;quot;impoverishing growth&amp;quot;, &amp;quot;growth without development&amp;quot;. The leading characteristic of the low-quality growth is recognized as the long-term evolution of the domestic economy in the vein of the historically futile natural resource export model, which, through the mechanisms of the &amp;quot;Dutch disease&amp;quot; and regular fluctuations in global energy prices, moves in an excessively cyclical form, inevitably making the socio-economic development of the country unstable. Significant determinants of its unstable growth, carefully concealed by the methods of misleading macroeconomic statistics presented in the article, are also uncovered being the dominance of extensive factors over the intensive ones associated with increasing macroeconomic efficiency and achieving accumulation rates close to the optimum values, the socially conflicting nature of GDP growth, accompanied by the excessive income inequality, both in terms of income and property, even in the relatively favorable conditions compared to global practice, and the resource-intensive and wasteful nature of the dynamics of the national economy.

Deep Well and Ultra-Deep Well Drilling and Completion Technology Optimization and Application of Kuche Piedmont Area

In recent years, the exploration and development of China's Tarim Basin has moved towards ultra-deep and complex areas. With the increase in well depth and the influence of the geological characteristics of the Kuche Piedmont area, a series of drilling problems for 8000m-level ultra-deep wells in this area have been caused. As a result, a series of new drilling and completion technologies have been formed: ①Based on the tower standard I type well structure, the improved tower standard II-B\II-C type well structure is used to solve the drilling of two sets of salt formations. Difficulties; ②Optimizing UDM-2 oil-based drilling fluid, achieving an average hole diameter expansion rate of only 6.82%, reducing lost circulation and other complications; ③Designing and optimizing a new type of multi-edge PDC bit to significantly increase the average ROP; ④Application The industry-leading pre-measurement resistivity technology successfully predicts the salt bottom; ⑤The application of fine controlled pressure cementing technology to achieve effective sealing of high-pressure saline formations. In recent years, the Kuche Piedmont Block in the Tarim Basin has continued to tackle key problems in the application of ultra-deep well drilling and completion technologies, and has successfully reached a new level of 8000m, which has played an important role in supporting the development of deep oil and gas exploration and development business.