Global Circuit Research Articles

Постпандемический синдром как социально-психологическая и экономическая деструкция

The article highlights the socio-psychological and economic aspects of the regulation of society during an extreme psychosocial event in the format of a Pandemic as a staged act of social separation. Artificial Extremum highlighted the main thing: in state entities aimed at satisfying only the vital needs of a person, intra-system contradictions are critically increasing, since the regulation of society is associated with the dominant satisfaction of higher needs in the creative development of a person. Technologies of social separation have led to pathological psychological consequences — a critical breakdown of social ties. This is the first time that an irrevocable extreme situation has emerged in History, and there is no way out of it under the old model of social regulation. It also became clear that the “Pandemic-2020” did not allow to remove the accumulated financial crisis contradictions, as the global industrial Autonomous circuit continues to work properly and consistently provides vital functions of the human population. Since the second wave of the pandemic extreme has been announced, individuals who have lost the features of social subjectivity cannot integrate to achieve socially significant results of their activities. The only way out of the crisis situation is a conscious scientifically based transition to a new psychosocial model of society, already programmed by a new universal attractor of the historical process.

Neuroplasticity-driven timing modulations revealed by ultrafast functional magnetic resonance imaging

Detecting neuroplasticity in global brain circuits in vivo is key for understanding myriad processes such as memory, learning, and recovery from injury. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) is instrumental for such in vivo mappings, yet it typically relies on mapping changes in spatial extent of activation or via signal amplitude modulations, whose interpretation can be highly ambiguous. Importantly, a central aspect of neuroplasticity involves modulation of neural activity timing properties. We thus hypothesized that this temporal dimension could serve as a new marker for neuroplasticity. To detect fMRI signals more associated with the underlying neural dynamics, we developed an ultrafast fMRI (ufMRI) approach facilitating high spatiotemporal sensitivity and resolution in distributed neural pathways. When neuroplasticity was induced in the mouse visual pathway via dark rearing, ufMRI indeed mapped temporal modulations in the entire visual pathway. Our findings therefore suggest a new dimension for exploring neuroplasticity in vivo.

Atmospheric electric field variations during fair weather and thunderstorms at different altitudes

Ground-based electric field measurements during fair weather and thunderstorms are key parameters for Global Electric Circuit investigations and climate change assessment. We study the variations of near surface electric field during fair weather and thunderstorms. In this work we present daily, monthly and yearly distribution of thunderstorm activity from 2012 to 2019 at different research stations of Cosmic Ray Division (CRD) of the A. Alikhanyan National Science Laboratory (Yerevan Physics Institute) which has been done the first time for mentioned locations. The distribution of fair-weather days based on electric field variation and meteorological parameters are also discussed. According to results, thunderstorm activity is very high from May to June and the most active part during the day is from 15:00 to 20:00 LT at three different altitudes.

A comparative study of mesoscale flow-field modelling in an Eastern Alpine region using WRF and GRAMM-SCI

Recently, the mesoscale model GRAMM-SCI has been further developed to make use of the freely available global ERA5 reanalysis dataset issued by the ECMWF. In this study, first results are discussed for the federal state of Styria, which is situated in the eastern Alps of Austria. Additional simulations were made with the mesoscale model WRF, which serve as a benchmark in this work. The model runs covered one week in summer and another one in winter dominated by fair weather conditions. These were characterized by the development of complex mountain wind systems in the Alps, which play an important role for the dispersion of pollutants. Regarding the bias and the root mean square error both models perform very well in comparison with existing studies for Alpine areas and are able to capture the main features of observed surface flows such as valley-wind systems or katabatic flows at slopes. In addition, observed calm wind conditions at many stations during the winter period were reproduced by the models. However, the correct simulation of wind directions in these conditions was found to be extremely challenging. Existing model quality criteria for wind direction seem to be too strict for low-wind-speed conditions. Therefore, based on theoretical and empirical considerations, a new model evaluation benchmark for wind direction is proposed, which takes into account the random nature of horizontally meandering flows in stagnant weather situations.

Behind the curve: a comparison of historical sources for the Carnegie curve of the global atmospheric electric circuit

Abstract. The “Carnegie curve” describes the diurnal variation of the global atmospheric electric circuit. It was originally found from atmospheric electric potential gradient (PG) measurements made on the Carnegie, effectively a floating atmospheric electrical observatory, which undertook global cruises between 1915 and 1929. These measurements confirmed that the single diurnal cycle PG variation, previously obtained in both polar regions, was global in extent. The averaged diurnal PG variation, represented by derived harmonic fits, provides a characteristic variation known as the “Carnegie curve”, against which modern measurements are still compared. The ocean air PG measurements were extensively described in reports of the Carnegie Institution of Washington (CIW) but widely used secondary sources of the Carnegie curve contain small differences, arising through approximations and transcription errors. Investigations using the historical CIW data show that the original harmonic fit coefficients are reproducible. Despite the inconsistencies, the secondary sources nevertheless mostly yield diurnal variations which fall within the variability of the original historical data.

A fresh look at Gulf of Mexico tectonics: Testing rotations and breakup mechanisms from the perspective of seismically constrained potential-fields modeling and plate kinematics

Interpretation of recent, high-quality seismic data in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) has led to competing hypotheses regarding the basin’s rift to drift transition. Some studies suggest a fault-controlled mechanism that ultimately results in mantle exhumation prior to seafloor spreading. Others suggest voluminous magmatic intrusion accommodates the terminal extension phase and results in the extrusion of volcanic seaward dipping reflectors (SDRs). Whereas it has been generally accepted that the plate motions between the rift and drift phases of the GOM are nearly perpendicular to each other, it has not been greatly discussed if the breakup mechanism plays a role in accommodating the transition in plate motion. We have developed a plate kinematic and crustal architecture hypothesis to address the transition from rift to drift in the GOM. We support the proposition of a fault-controlled breakup mechanism, in which slip on a detachment between the crust and mantle may have exhumed the mantle. However, we stress that this mechanism is not exclusive of synrift magmatism, though it does imply that SDRs observed in the GOM are not in this case indicative of a volcanic massif separating attenuated continental and normal oceanic crust. We support our hypothesis through a geometrically realistic 2D potential field model, which includes a magnetic seafloor spreading model constrained by recent published seismic data and analog rock properties. The 2D model suggests that magnetic anomalies near the continent-ocean transition may be related to removal of the lower continental crust during a phase of hyperextension prior to breakup, ending in mantle exhumation. The kinematics of breakup, derived from recent satellite gravity data and constrained by our spreading model and the global plate circuit, suggests that this phase of hyperextension accommodated the change in plate motion direction and a diachronous breakup across the GOM.

Looking Back, Moving Forward

The Melbourne Women in Film Festival (MWFF) is a four-day event in Melbourne, Australia, that supports and celebrates the work of Australian women filmmakers. Launched in 2017, the festival emerged from our desire as screen academics to increase the visibility of both professional and amateur women filmmakers and their work. Despite a strong history of grassroots and state-supported women’s creative cultures in Australia, women have remained marginal within the domestic screen industry. Women filmmakers are also underrepresented within the global festival circuit. This article traces the curatorial practices underpinning MWFF since its inception. We describe our approach to running a locally based, women-centered film festival; how we define “women” and “women’s filmmaking”; and how our programing choices support our festival ethos. We also contextualize our event as one that both continues and is in dialogue with women’s screen culture in Australia, particularly the one-off Women’s International Film Festival held in 1975. Locating our festival in this historical context, we argue that retrospective screenings play a particularly vital role at MWFF in achieving our festival aims. We recount our inaugural festival in 2017 and explain the significance of retrospectives in building a legacy for women filmmakers and making their achievements visible to the next generation.

Gender in the modernisation of waste management: key lessons from fieldwork in Bhutan, Mongolia, and Nepal

ABSTRACT The waste sector is a significant and growing source of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Most developing countries are minor contributors to global GHG, and produce limited emissions from municipal solid waste. However, as poor countries become integrated into global circuits of production and consumption, their contributions to global GHG emissions are likely to increase concomitantly. National and local governments and international agencies have identified municipal waste sector reform and modernisation in emerging economies as a global priority for climate change mitigation. International attention and funding is increasingly targeted towards improved and sustainable waste management in developing countries, both as part of climate change mitigation strategies and as a response to the marine litter crises. However, when moving towards more sustainable practices of waste management, it is important to take into account socioeconomic factors and how modern approaches to sustainable waste management will impact the livelihoods of people who currently find their income – often informally – in current waste management activities. Here we look at how gender norms play an important role in current waste management practices and how gender equality is influenced if the modernisation of waste sector is not taking into account gender aspects.

Analysis of long-term potential gradient variations measured in the Argentinian Andes

Continuous measurements of the potential gradient are being recorded at the CASLEO astronomical observatory near to the Andes Mountain of Argentina, since 2010 (Latitude: 31°47.88′S, Longitude: 69°17.7′W, Altitude: 2552 masl). This study aims to use the potential gradient diurnal variation in fair weather conditions, which we named ‘standard curve’, to examine its correlation with the ‘universal’ Carnegie curve and to investigate its dependence with aerosol amount and lightning occurrences. In addition, a spectral analysis was performed to our data. The aerosol optical depth is recorded by an AERONET station at CASLEO, while the lightning occurrences was obtained from the STARNET network. For the analysis, the average of monthly, seasonal and annual electric field curves was determined. We found that the shape of these curves is preserved from year to year indicating their high reliability. The correlation between the standard curve for CASLEO and the Carnegie curve was found to be high (r = 0.94). However, some significant local effects were also found. We determined that these local effects in the standard curve may be associated to the convective process, which is more predominant during summertime than wintertime. The inspection of the seasonal variation of the potential gradient and the lightning occurrences showed a high similarity only after removing the effects of aerosols. Apart from this, the spectral analysis exposed a daily, annual and 165-day oscillation in the potential gradient.

Genome-Wide Transcription Start Site Mapping and Promoter Assignments to a Sigma Factor in the Human Enteropathogen Clostridioides difficile.

The emerging human enteropathogen Clostridioides difficile is the main cause of diarrhea associated with antibiotherapy. Regulatory pathways underlying the adaptive responses remain understudied and the global view of C. difficile promoter structure is still missing. In the genome of C. difficile 630, 22 genes encoding sigma factors are present suggesting a complex pattern of transcription in this bacterium. We present here the first transcriptional map of the C. difficile genome resulting from the identification of transcriptional start sites (TSS), promoter motifs and operon structures. By 5′-end RNA-seq approach, we mapped more than 1000 TSS upstream of genes. In addition to these primary TSS, this analysis revealed complex structure of transcriptional units such as alternative and internal promoters, potential RNA processing events and 5′ untranslated regions. By following an in silico iterative strategy that used as an input previously published consensus sequences and transcriptomic analysis, we identified candidate promoters upstream of most of protein-coding and non-coding RNAs genes. This strategy also led to refine consensus sequences of promoters recognized by major sigma factors of C. difficile. Detailed analysis focuses on the transcription in the pathogenicity locus and regulatory genes, as well as regulons of transition phase and sporulation sigma factors as important components of C. difficile regulatory network governing toxin gene expression and spore formation. Among the still uncharacterized regulons of the major sigma factors of C. difficile, we defined the SigL regulon by combining transcriptome and in silico analyses. We showed that the SigL regulon is largely involved in amino-acid degradation, a metabolism crucial for C. difficile gut colonization. Finally, we combined our TSS mapping, in silico identification of promoters and RNA-seq data to improve gene annotation and to suggest operon organization in C. difficile. These data will considerably improve our knowledge of global regulatory circuits controlling gene expression in C. difficile and will serve as a useful rich resource for scientific community both for the detailed analysis of specific genes and systems biology studies.

Challenges in coupling atmospheric electricity with biological systems

The atmosphere is host to a complex electric environment, ranging from a global electric circuit generating fluctuating atmospheric electric fields to local lightning strikes and ions. While research on interactions of organisms with their electrical environment is deeply rooted in the aquatic environment, it has hitherto been confined to interactions with local electrical phenomena and organismal perception of electric fields. However, there is emerging evidence of coupling between large- and small-scale atmospheric electrical phenomena and various biological processes in terrestrial environments that even appear to be tied to continental waters. Here, we synthesize our current understanding of this connectivity, discussing how atmospheric electricity can affect various levels of biological organization across multiple ecosystems. We identify opportunities for research, highlighting its complexity and interdisciplinary nature and draw attention to both conceptual and technical challenges lying ahead of our future understanding of the relationship between atmospheric electricity and the organization and functioning of biological systems.

Promotion of Polish Cinema Abroad as an Element of Nation Branding. Case Study of “Cold War” (2018) by Pawel Pawlikowski

The subject of this article is nation branding in the culture market, namely the role cinematography plays in creating a nation brand. Sustainability and sustainable development in the film industry is conditioned by variety in cultural promotion channels. The aim of the authors is to prove that appropriately organised cinematography promotion abroad can positively influence the image of a given country. The first section deals with the relationship between media and sustainable development, as well as with theoretical definitions of branding and the nation brand. Subsequently, cinematography in the context of branding is discussed. The core of this work is a case study of film promotion abroad from the institutional perspective of the Polish Film Institute. The promotional strategy for “Cold War” (2018) directed by Paweł Pawlikowski has been analysed, as this motion picture is considered one of the biggest successes of post-1989 Polish cinematography. Factors positively influencing its popularity were analysed alongside their influence on the general perception of Polish cinema abroad. Based on the results of empirical studies, the authors present their discussion of the functional state and the role of Polish cinematography on the global circuit, as well as attempt to verify its importance in relation to sustainability.

River writing and “the tyranny of beginnings:” Autobiographies along rivers

Many contemporary autobiographical texts that depict a transcultural self prominently feature waterscapes in the foreground. The present study focuses on how rivers are functionalized in two autobiographical accounts: the essayistic Flodernas bok (The book of rivers, 2012) by the Swedish poet and essayist Nina Burton, and the autofictional novel Am Fluß (2014) by Esther Kinsky. Both combine the literary representation of travels along rivers with an exploration of European cultural history, but also the history of the self.Using Schmitz-Emans’s (2008) concept of ‘water writing’ for studying ‘riverlike’ writing modes and discussing the findings against the backdrop of research on the cultural significance of water, this article demonstrates how both texts challenge the presumed linearity of rivers by focusing on how they are embedded in a global circuit of waters. It shows that a river’s ability to transgress national borders makes ‘river writing’ attractive for autobiographical enterprises. Finally, both texts emphasize the relationship between man and water as well as that between man and the environment through water. This relatedness of humans and landscape through the fluid element indicates that the self is not sovereign, stable and hovering above its environment, but rather an embedded entity, interwoven in complex fluid networks of interaction.

Global multistability and analog circuit implementation of an adapting synapse-based neuron model

Generally, neural networks involve the change with time of the neuron activities and that in strength of the synapses between neurons. This paper investigates the global multistability and analog circuit implementation of a two-dimensional adapting synapse-based neuron model in depth. The neuron model is non-autonomous and possesses periodically switchable equilibrium states associated with the externally imposed input closely. In every full periodic cycle of the input, the equilibrium stability has complex dynamical transitions between stable and unstable points via Hopf/fold bifurcations, resulting in the emergence of the global multistability that was not yet reported previously. Complex dynamics of the global coexisting multiple firing activities are demonstrated by multiple numerical measures, such as bifurcation plot, dynamical map, phase plane plot, and basin of attraction. Furthermore, an off-the-shelf discrete component-based circuit design is optimized to implement the neuron model and the outputs agree with the numerical results well.

Asymptotic Analysis for Overlap in Waveform Relaxation Methods for RC Type Circuits

Waveform relaxation (WR) methods are based on partitioning large circuits into sub-circuits which then are solved separately for multiple time steps in so called time windows, and an iteration is used to converge to the global circuit solution in each time window. Classical WR converges quite slowly, especially when long time windows are used. To overcome this issue, optimized WR (OWR) was introduced which is based on optimized transmission conditions that transfer information between the sub-circuits more efficiently than classical WR. We study here for the first time the influence of overlapping sub-circuits in both WR and OWR applied to RC circuits. We give a circuit interpretation of the new transmission conditions in OWR, and derive closed form asymptotic expressions for the circuit elements representing the optimization parameter in OWR. Our analysis shows that the parameter is quite different in the overlapping case, compared to the non-overlapping one. We then show numerically that our optimized choice performs well, also for cases not covered by our analysis. This paper provides a general methodology to derive optimized parameters and can be extended to other circuits or system of differential equations or space–time PDEs.

Sediment exchange between channel and sand ridges in the southern Yellow Sea: The importance of tidal asymmetries

The radial sand ridges found off the coast of Jiangsu (China) are major morphological features in the southern Yellow Sea and undergo rapid changes in morphology. Despite extensive observational and modeling efforts, the physical processes controlling sediment transport and associated morphological evolution over the ridges remain not well understood. Here we analyzed data collected from systematic hydrodynamic and sedimentary surveys including records from moorings and bottom-mounted tripods deployed at channels and adjacent ridges. We explored the role of advection and local resuspension processes in controlling morphological changes and how they are modulated by tidal asymmetry. Bottom shear stresses due to mean tidal currents, waves, and wave-current interactions were estimated to examine the effects of tidal asymmetry, advection and resuspension processes on suspended sediment concentration (SSC) variability. The simplified depth-averaged model of Bass et al. (2002) was used to explain the phase relationships between fine sediment suspensions and tidal currents. We found that resuspension is the major controlling factor of bottom SSC during mean and spring tides, while advection is the dominant process during neap tides. The asymmetries in water level and tidal current lead to a net lateral sediment transport directed from the channel to the sand ridges, which cause erosion in channels and deposition on the sand ridges. This sediment transport pattern likely contributes to the evolution of the sand ridges under fair weather conditions (i.e., excluding storm events).

Comparative analysis of local and global atmospheric electric field at the Northern Pakistan

Daily variations of the Atmospheric Electric Field (AEF) allow to observe separately the atmospheric electricity due to global and local factors. Observations of the AEF are made for three different sites of Pakistan during fair weather conditions. These three sites are Islamabad (ISB), Muzaffarabad (MZF) and Balakot (BKT). Analyses of the diurnal variations of the atmospheric electric field for these sites are discussed in this paper with respect to annual and seasonal behavior. Muzaffarabad and Balakot sites show two daily maxima and Islamabad site shows single maxima, characteristic of local influences, such as the aerosol, sunrise effect and “Austausch effect” or exchange layer effect. Later, these results are compared globally with land based measurements available in the literature and with the Carnegie curve. Local effects found to be dominant among these sites with respect to one another due to geographical location, climate and different meteorological parameters. This is the first different creation of the ISB-MZF-BKT database which will be very effective to improve the information of atmospheric electricity in the complex processes due to weather and climate. This database from Pakistan will be useful for the scientific community for further understating and investigation of the Global Electric Circuit (GEC).

Extensive layer clouds in the global electric circuit: their effects on vertical charge distribution and storage.

A fair-weather electric field has been observed near the Earth's surface for over two centuries. The field is sustained by charge generation in distant disturbed weather regions, through current flow in the global electric circuit. Conventionally, the fair-weather part of the global circuit has disregarded clouds, but extensive layer clouds, important to climate, are widespread globally. Such clouds are not electrically inert, becoming charged at their upper and lower horizontal boundaries from vertical current flow, in a new electrical regime—neither fair nor disturbed weather; hence it is described here as semi-fair weather. Calculations and measurements show the upper cloud boundary charge is usually positive, the cloud interior positive and the lower cloud boundary negative, with the upper charge density larger, but of the same magnitude (∼nC m−2) as cloud base. Globally, the total positive charge stored by layer clouds is approximately 105 C, which, combined with the positive charge in the atmospheric column above the cloud up to the ionosphere, balances the total negative surface charge of the fair-weather regions. Extensive layer clouds are, therefore, an intrinsic aspect of the global circuit, and the resulting natural charging of their cloud droplets is a fundamental atmospheric feature.

An Integrated Cooling Jet and Air Curtain System for Stadiums in Hot Climates

The 2022 FIFA World Cup brings Qatar great challenges in terms of minimizing the cooling energy consumption and providing thermal comfort for both spectators and players. This paper presents comparisons among the results of thermal and wind environment modelling of a semi-outdoor stadium under three different cooling configurations and a baseline configuration without cooling using the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tool ANSYS Fluent 18.2. The three cooling configurations are: (1) vertical jets only above upper tiers, (2) vertical jets above upper tiers and horizontal jets at the back of lower tiers and around the pitch, (3) integrated vertical jets above upper tiers, horizontal jets at the back of lower tiers and air curtains at gates. De-coupled solar radiation simulations are implemented using the solar irradiance data in Doha under fair weather conditions method in Fluent in order to capture realistic thermal boundary conditions for the ground, stadium and surrounding buildings. On the basis of the set conditions, the results show that air curtains, employed in configuration 3 are effective in preventing the penetration of hot outside air through the gates of the stadium, which is an existing issue for stadiums in hot climates, and also contribute to lower energy consumption per match than the other configurations of cooling jets. The results presented in this study are useful not only for future design and retrofits of stadiums in hot climates but also for stadiums that incorporate mechanical cooling.

Special features of the studies of deep electrical conductivity of the Moon and the Earth (once more on toroidal mode of natural magnetic field)

Studies of the deep electrical conductivity of the Earth and the Moon are carried out by measuring and analyzing the natural electromagnetic (EM) fields excited by the solar wind, introducing an electric field of the order of 2 mV/m applied to the boundaries of the Earth’s magnetosphere or directly to the surface of the Moon. For a concentrically layered sphere with electrical conductivity σ = σ (r), the EM fields can be represented as the sum of two modes: electric with a toroidal magnetic field and magnetic with a poloidal magnetic field. Each of the modes is associated with electrical conductivity by different ratios/formulas and is characterized by different possibilities for studying the electrical conductivity inside a celestial body. It is generally accepted that currents from the boundary of the Earth’s magnetosphere descend along the geomagnetic field lines to the ionosphere, but do not reach the Earth due to the very high resistance of near-the-surface air layer (up to 1014 Ohm · m) and only poloidal fields of the magnetic mode are induced in the solid Earth. A review of the data on the global electric circuit shows that vertical currents penetrate from the atmosphere into the Earth and the electric mode is not equal to zero. Vertical currents are characterized by strong spatio-temporal variability. Separation of the modes from observation data was not carried out. On the Moon, the high-resistance layer is the lithosphere with regolith and breccias on its surface with a resistivity of 107―1012 Ohm · m. Spatial inhomogeneities of the Moon interior are considered and a conclusion is made about their multitude and intensity. Based on the analysis of the spatial distribution of tidal and tectonic moonquakes, it was suggested that they trace quasi-vertical structures like a plume. The results of observations of volcanism and transient lunar phenomena, obtained in recent years by orbital missions with high-resolution equipment, indicate an intense degassing of the moon. All this allows us to conclude that in the Moon there are quasi-vertical conductors supporting an electric mode. Proposals for the optimization of new studies of the electrical conductivity of the moon are substantiated and formulated. Deep studies of electrical conductivity are based on a theoretical model of the magnetic mode, the existence of the electrical mode is neglected, and it falls into unidentified noise, which by means of coherent analysis and multi-stage processing is largely eliminated and the conductivity models more or less correctly describe the real geoelectric structure of the Earth, but with probable systematic errors. Separation and study of the electric mode should be considered as an additional channel of information in EM studies of planets.