Bottom-up Principles Research Articles

Are you acting sustainably in your daily practice? Introduction of the Four-S model of sustainability

Young generations worldwide are not only drastically calling for a more sustainable future, but for having a future at all. In this conceptual article, we pursue the question of how we can make this happen, and argue why it is up to every individual to do so. Based on the rationale of the four-c model of creativity, we argue for four levels of individual sustainability actions: mini-s, little-s, Pro-S and Big-S. Mini-s actions are intrapersonal and represent a core element of individual learning about sustainability. Little-s actions are more interpersonal and demonstrate, on average, a higher reach and impact than mini-s. Pro-S stands for professional actions and solutions. These types of actions are interpersonal and extend their reach and impact beyond a small group of people. They usually need some degree of expertise to achieve a greater reach and impact. Big-S relates to big actions with the highest reach, impact, novelty and usefulness. They refer to solutions that are likely to change how we generally relate to a given product or category and cause a drastic change in our lifestyle. We discuss each action category with examples and outline how these actions may support different sustainability solutions. For this, we search relevant literature on current measurement and conceptual approaches and on specific solutions and take the case of a comprehensive economic approach, steady state economy. Also, concrete levels, conditions, goals, attributes, creativity degrees, profits, motivations and bottom-up principles with examples of application are introduced.

Creating environmental consciousness in underserved communities: Implementation and outcomes of community-based environmental justice and air pollution research

While the literature documents known barriers to research participation in underserved communities, there are still very few evidence-based strategies that have successfully addressed gaps regarding recruitment and retention. To this end, we developed a replicable model designed to establish community-academic partnerships and advance environmental health research in underserved communities. The Environmental Justice Community Alert Matrix (EJCAM) was implemented in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and includes programmatic elements of both citizen science and community engagement: (1) Outreach – Community Action Teams, (2) Involvement – Urban Transition Cities Movement, (3) Participatory Research – Mobile Air Quality Monitoring Bicycle Campaign, and (4) Consultation – Indoor Air Quality Assessments. Resident-led workshops were used to increase environmental consciousness in communities through peer-to-peer education. Adapting citizen science methods, commercially available particle counters were retrofitted to bicycles and the associated data used to develop GIS maps of particulate matter dispersion. Results show spatially-resolved PM2.5 values increase from background levels by an order of magnitude or 1000 counts adjacent to construction sites and public transportation hubs. As distrust in outside institutions has limited the reach of environmental justice research in underserved communities, bottom-up principles that start with individuals are essential, and should be undertaken as a meaningful and ongoing process.

Cellular Automata for Studying Historical Spatial Process of Traditional Settlements Based on Gaussian Mixture Model: A Case Study of Qiaoxiang Village in Southern China

ABSTRACTThe spatial evolution of traditional rural settlements is a natural process that occurs without professional development planning. With rural spatial organization now being stimulated by China’s economic structure adjustment, making top-down plans match bottom-up spatial principles is important for the continuity of rural communities. In this research, a Cellular automaton based model was introduced to describe the historical spatial rules of rural settlements based on a traditional village in Southern China. In order to reproduce the rural spatial characteristics and laws that were close to the actual situation truthfully and distinctly, in this model, we refined the growth process into three cyclical steps, and used a Multivariate Gaussian Mixture Model for the evaluation of spatial transition potential. Through historical simulation, evaluation of the current status, and future spatial predictions, results showed that: (1) the growth during the whole spatial process maintained logical consistency for optimal selection; (2) certain houses in the southeast region should be carefully protected as a core living culture exhibit, while the best utilization of other homes should be considered; and (3) the most probable region of growth for tourist services or new housing estates is scattered along the river in the central area of the village.

Resonance Enhancement of Nonlinear Optical Scattering in Monolayer-Protected Gold Clusters.

Monolayer-protected metal clusters (MPCs) have recently gained significant research interest, since they are promising candidates for various applications in bioimaging and catalysis. Besides this, MPCs promise to aid in understanding the evolution of the metallic state from bottom-up principles. MPCs can be prepared with atomic precision, and their nonscalable properties (indicating molecule-like behavior) have been studied with a variety of techniques both theoretically and experimentally. Here, we present spectrally resolved second-order nonlinear optical scattering experiments on thiolate-protected gold clusters (Au130(SR)50, Au144(SR)60, and Au500(SR)120). The three clusters share common resonance enhancement around 490 nm, which is ascribed to an interband transition. This indicates emerging metal-like properties, and we tentatively assign the onset of metal-like behavior somewhere between 102 and 130 gold atoms.

Synthetic biology engineering of biofilms as nanomaterials factories.

Bottom-up fabrication of nanoscale materials has been a significant focus in materials science for expanding our technological frontiers. This assembly concept, however, is old news to biology - all living organisms fabricate themselves using bottom-up principles through a vast self-organizing system of incredibly complex biomolecules, a marvelous dynamic that we are still attempting to unravel. Can we use what we have gleaned from biology thus far to illuminate alternative strategies for designer nanomaterial manufacturing? In the present review article, new synthetic biology efforts toward using bacterial biofilms as platforms for the synthesis and secretion of programmable nanomaterials are described. Particular focus is given to self-assembling functional amyloids found in bacterial biofilms as re-engineerable modular nanomolecular components. Potential applications and existing challenges for this technology are also explored. This novel approach for repurposing biofilm systems will enable future technologies for using engineered living systems to grow artificial nanomaterials.

Absolute Quantification of Middle- to High-Abundant Plasma Proteins via Targeted Proteomics.

The increasing number of peptide and protein biomarker candidates requires expeditious and reliable quantification strategies. The utilization of liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the absolute quantitation of plasma proteins and peptides facilitates the multiplexed verification of tens to hundreds of biomarkers from smallest sample quantities. Targeted proteomics assays derived from bottom-up proteomics principles rely on the identification and analysis of proteotypic peptides formed in an enzymatic digestion of the target protein. This protocol proposes a procedure for the establishment of a targeted absolute quantitation method for middle- to high-abundant plasma proteins waiving depletion or enrichment steps. Essential topics as proteotypic peptide identification and LC-MS/MS method development as well as sample preparation and calibration strategies are described in detail.

Style-Dependency of Melodic Expectation

In theories of auditory scene analysis and melodic implication/realization, melodic expectation results from an interaction between top-down processes (assumed to be learned and schema-based) and bottom-up processes (assumed innate, based on Gestalt principles). If principles of melodic expectation are partly acquired, it should be possible to manipulate them – to condition listeners' expectations. In this study, the resistance of three bottom-up expectation principles to learning was tested experimentally. In Experiment 1, expectations for stepwise motion (pitch proximity) were manipulated by conditioning listeners to large melodic leaps; preference for small intervals was reduced after a brief exposure. In Experiment 2, expectations for leaps to rise and steps to fall (step declination) were manipulated by exposing listeners to melodies comprising rising steps and falling leaps; this reduced preferences for descending seconds and thirds. Experiment 3 did not find and hence failed to alter the expectation for small intervals to be followed by an interval in the same direction (step inertia). The results support the theory that bottom-up principles of melodic perception are partly learned from exposure to pitch patterns in music. The long-term learning process could be reinforced by exposure to speech based on similar organization principles.

Old and new strategic roles for the European Union Framework Programme

This paper discusses the achievements of the European Union Framework Programme, paying special attention to its nature as a collaborative research programme. It draws on current studies of the Programme, particularly its various networking impacts, and addresses the new challenges that European research policies need to take into account. It concludes by outlining potential directions which the development of the Framework Programme might take. It suggests that more attention be paid to a greater strategic focus, it recommends greater flexibility and the application of bottom-up principles, it advances pre-competitiveness as a viable principle, and it draws attention to cohesion and the problems brought about by the potential enlargement of the European Union.

Expectancies generated by melodic intervals: perceptual judgments of melodic continuity.

The present study tested quantified predictors based on the bottom-up principles of Narmour's (1990) implication-realization model of melodic expectancy against continuity ratings collected for a tone that followed a two-tone melodic beginning. Twenty-four subjects (12 musically trained, 12 untrained) were presented with each of eight melodic intervals--two successive tones which they were asked to consider as the beginning of a melody. On each trial, a melodic interval was followed by a third tone, one of the 25 chromatic notes within the range one octave below to one octave above the second tone of the interval. The subjects were asked to rate how well the third tone continued the melody. A series of regression analyses was performed on the continuation ratings, and a final model to account for the variance in the ratings is proposed. Support was found for three of Narmour's principles and a modified version of a fourth. Support was also found for predictor variables based on the pitch organization of tonal harmonic music. No significant differences between the levels of musical training were encountered.