Nearby Locations Research Articles

Sverdrup-Henson crater: A candidate location for the first lunar South Pole settlement

Robotic and manned exploration of the Moon is the next target in Solar System exploration. The availability of in situ resources such as water ice, iron oxides, helium-3, and rare earth elements, combined with permanently sunlit areas, provides the opportunity for the first settlement, either human or robotic, on the Moon. We used several selection criteria (abundance of water ice, the slope of terrain, usable energy sources, communications, and base expandability) to identify a suitable area for a future base in the southern polar crater Sverdrup-Henson. Due to the higher abundance of water ice, we found that the Sverdrup-Henson site is better suited to host a base than the nearby craters de Gerlache and Shackleton. The crater floor is partly in permanent shadow and exhibits numerous signatures of water ice. Since water ice is essential for rocket fuel production and human survival, its presence is necessary for a first settlement. Sverdrup-Henson has a flat floor ideal for building and safe traversing, is accessible from the surrounding intercrater plains, and has nearby locations suitable for communications and solar power production. Thus, the Sverdrup-Henson site holds great potential for future missions. We propose further exploration of this area through in situ measurements to better constrain available resources.

Formulation of a virgin coconut oil based spicy spread and its physico- chemical properties

Virgin coconut oil (VCO) fits the designation of a very important functional food and is expected to show a dramatic growth in the Indian market. This study aims to evaluate the physico- chemical characteristics of a spicy fat spread, formulated using virgin coconut oil, trans- free fat (TFF) and spice mixtures along with emulsifiers. The effect of varying the VCO: fat ratio (100:00; 30:70; 50:50; and 70:30) on the quality parameters of the spicy spread such as moisture, fat, protein, and ash were studied. The phase separation, colour characteristics, rheological quality, melting profiles by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and textural properties (spreadability) were also studied. Results show that the moisture of the spicy spreads ranged between 1.59% and 1.72%, fat 49–50%, protein 18–20%, and ash content ranged between 0.21% and 0.22%. The prepared spreads showed marginal oil separation at 25 °C (ambient) and higher amounts at 37 °C (accelerated) temperatures. The consistency or hardness measured in Newton (N) showed an increase with an increase in the amount of fat and simultaneous decrease with increased amounts of VCO. Similar trends were observed with the spicy spread's viscosity, yield stress and consistency index. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated the presence of two clusters positioned in nearby locations of the PCA biplot. The first cluster comprised of attributes like spreadability and VCO aroma while the second had glossiness and smoothness. PCA and sensory analysis results showed that sample containing virgin coconut oil and TFF in equal proportions (50:50) was the most acceptable spread with respect to spreadability and overall sensory acceptability.

Psychological Science Meets Wearable Cognitive Assistance

A wearable cognitive assistant (WCA) is a computer-based application that guides a user through a task with input from wearable devices with the aid of computational resources in nearby locations (cloudlets). Psychological science informs development of WCAs and is encountering new issues for research. We discuss three relevant research areas: response time, action segmentation, and task comprehension.

Description of Eretmocera hafeetensis sp. nov. from UAE (Lepidoptera, Scythrididae)

Eretmocera hafeetensissp. nov., a moth in the family Scythrididae, is described and illustrated based on the examination of three male and 13 female specimens collected at the foot of Jebel Hafeet, an isolated 1,140 metres-high massif just south of Al Ain, after which the new species is named. The new species is distinct from congeners in details of its male and female genitalia and is also readily separated in the field from other Eretmocera species. The new addition brings the number of confirmed species in this genus represented in the UAE to three. The discovery of this species at Ain Al Waal, Jebel Hafeet highlights the conservation importance of this and similar nearby locations, which are beginning to reveal unique species among its already species-rich fauna at a time of huge human encroachment into the area.

Doppler Sodar Measured Winds and Sea Breeze Intrusions over Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E), India

Doppler sodar measurements were made at the tropical Indian station, i.e., Gadanki (13.5° N, 79. 2° E). According to wind climatologies, the wind pattern changes from month to month. In July and August, the predominant wind direction during the monsoon season was the southwest. In September, it was the northwest and south. While the winds in November came from the northeast, they came from the northwest and southwest in October. The winds in December were out of the southeast. The diurnal cycle of winds at 60-m above the ground was visible, with disturbed wind directions in September and October. This may be connected to the Indian subcontinent’s southeastern monsoon recession. To better understand the monsoon circulation on a monthly basis, the present work is innovative in that it uses high-resolution winds measured using the Doppler sodar at the atmospheric boundary layer. The convergence of a sea breeze and the background wind might result in a sudden change in wind direction, and forecasting such a chaotic atmospheric event is crucial in the aviation sector. As a result, the wind shear that is produced may pose a serious threat to airplanes that are landing. In the current study, we present a few cases of sea breeze intrusions. The physics underlying these intrusions may help modelers better understand these chaotic wind structures and use them as inputs in their models. Based on surface-based atmospheric characteristics, there have been two reports of deep sea breeze intrusions that we report in this research. The sea breeze days were marked by substantial (moderate) drops in temperature (dewpoint temperatures) and increased wind speed and relative humidity. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) rainfall data showed a rise in precipitation over this location on 23 July (4.8 mm) and 24 July (9.5 mm) when sea breeze intrusions over Gadanki were noticed. Sea breeze intrusions could have brought precipitation (intrusion-laden precipitation) to this area due to conducive meteorological conditions. A simple schematic model is proposed through a diagrammatic illustration that explains how a sea breeze triggers precipitation over adjacent locations to the seacoast. The skew-T log-P diagrams have been drawn using the balloon-borne radiosonde measured atmospheric data over Chennai (a nearby location to Gadanki) to examine the thermodynamic parameters to gain insights into the underlying mechanisms and meteorological conditions during sea breeze intrusion events. It is found that the convective available potential energy (CAPE), which is presented as a thermos diagram, was associated with large values on 23 July and 24 July (898 J/kg and 1250 J/kg), which could have triggered thunderstorms over Chennai.

Influences of local and global context on local orientation perception.

Visual context modulates perception of local orientation attributes. These spatially very localised effects are considered to correspond to specific excitatory-inhibitory connectivity patterns of early visual areas as V1, creating perceptual tilt repulsion and attraction effects. Here, orientation misperception of small Gabor stimuli was used as a probe of this computational structure by sampling a large spatio-orientation space to reveal expected asymmetries due to the underlying neuronal processing. Surprisingly, the results showed a regular iso-orientation pattern of nearby location effects whose reference point was globally modulated by the spatial structure, without any complex interactions between local positions and orientation. This pattern of results was confirmed by the two perceptual parameters of bias and discrimination ability. Furthermore, the response times to stimulus configuration displayed variations that further provided evidence of how multiple early visual stages affect perception of simple stimuli.

Using environmental DNA to better inform decision making around decommissioning alternatives for offshore oil and gas infrastructure

Artificial reefs are being utilised globally to aid in natural resource management, conservation, restoration or the creation of unique marine habitats. There is discussion around the optimal construction materials and designs for artificial reefs, the influences these have on biological communities, and the resulting ecological and social benefits. This discussion also includes the ecological value of repurposed marine infrastructure, such as decommissioned oil and gas platforms. Platforms often have an operational life spanning multiple decades, over which time they can develop extensive and unique community assemblages. The creation of artificial reefs by repurposing oil and gas platforms can have ecological, economic and sociological merit. However, with >12,000 platforms requiring decommissioning globally, there is the need for holistic assessment of biological communities associated with these platforms to inform the potential outcomes of different decommissioning options. We use environmental DNA metabarcoding (eDNA) of water, bio-foul and sediment samples to census broad eukaryotic diversity at eight platforms in the Gulf of Thailand (GoT) and five nearby soft sediment habitat locations. We sampled three target depths at sites (shallow, mid, deep) and detected 430 taxa at platforms, with higher diversity in shallow (near-surface) samples (313 taxa), compared to mid (30 m collection depth; 261 taxa) and deep (50 m; 273 taxa). Three percent of taxa were shared among all depths at platforms with distinct assembles at each depth. Introduced species are an ongoing risk for platforms, however the eDNA detected no known introduced species. While the eDNA data provide broad taxon coverage and significant assemblage patterns, ongoing sampling innovation, assay design and local reference material still require development to obtain the maximum benefit of the technique. This study highlights the versatility and scalability of eDNA metabarcoding to holistically census marine infrastructure and inform the management and potential conservation of extant communities.

Weather-Driven Complementarity between Daily Energy Demand at One Location and Renewable Supply at Another

Abstract In a future world where most of the energy must come from intermittent renewable energy sources such as wind or solar energy, it would be more efficient if, for each demand area, we could determine the locations for which the output of an energy source would naturally match the demand fluctuations from that area. In parallel, meteorological weather systems such as midlatitude cyclones are often organized in a way that naturally shapes where areas of greater energy need (e.g., regions with more cold air) are with respect to windier or sunnier areas, and these are generally not collocated. As a result, the best places to generate renewable energy may not be near consumption sites; these may be determined, however, by common meteorological patterns. Using data from a reanalysis of six decades of past weather, we determined the complementarity between different sources of energy as well as the relationships between renewable supply and demand at daily averaged time scales for several North American cities. In general, demand and solar power tend to be slightly positively correlated at nearby locations away from the Rocky Mountains; however, wind power often must be obtained from greater distances and at altitude for energy production to be better timed with consumption. Significance Statement Weather patterns such as high and low pressure systems shape where and when energy is needed for warming or cooling; they also shape how much renewable energy from winds and the sun can be produced. Hence, they determine the regions where more energy is likely to be available in periods of unusually high need for each demand location. Finding where those areas are may result in more timely renewable energy production in the future to help reduce fossil fuel use for energy production.

Analysis of Location Determination for Temporary Waste Collection Points Using p-dispersion Method: An Application to Yogyakarta City, Indonesia

The city of Yogyakarta, particularly the Maliobro-Kranggan sector, with a total population of 117,656, has the potential to generate 221 m3/day of waste, while the total capacity of the existing temporary waste collection points or Temporary Disposal Sites (TPS) is 17 units with a capacity of 306 m3. The Yogyakarta Environmental Agency must reconsider the number of TPS facilities and their capacities to meet the community's needs. In certain areas, there are nearby TPS locations, causing some of them not to function optimally as the community chooses the ones that are easily accessible. On the other hand, the proximity of TPS facilities also disturbs the comfort of the community due to worsening odor pollution. In response to this issue, this research aims to determine the optimal number of TPS facilities and their ideal locations using the p-dispersion method. This method is used to determine facility locations by maximizing the minimal distance between each available facility. This research also adds a criterion by considering the travel distance from waste sources to the selected facilities. The study is conducted using Lingo 11.0 software. Based on the data processing results, 13 of 17 TPS facilities were established. The total capacity is 254 m3/day, which can serve as the waste source for 13 community locations. The objective value obtained is 5900, which indicates that the minimum separation distance for the ideal facilities is 5900 meters.

The impact of coastal realignment on the availability of ecosystem services: gains, losses and trade-offs from a local community perspective

Coastal realignment is the procedure of repositioning or removing coastal defense structures to restore tidal flooding and facilitate the development of intertidal ecosystems in a previously reclaimed area from the sea. A key policy objective of coastal realignment is to increase ecosystem services provided by intertidal ecosystems and thereby contribute to human well-being. However, the social response to coastal realignment is often negative, raising the question as to what extent communities living nearby project locations recognize, value and benefit from the goods and services provided by restored intertidal ecosystems. In this study, we examine public perceptions of ecosystem services gains, losses and trade-offs associated with coastal realignment. We hereby focus on three coastal realignment case study locations in the Southwest delta, the Netherlands. Questionnaires were administered in nearby villages and the collected data (N = 261) were analyzed using random forest regression models. A notable outcome of this study is that local communities often consider coastal realignment interventions to decrease rather than increase the availability of ecosystem services. This points to a discrepancy between how coastal realignment is viewed from a policy perspective and a local community perspective. Changes in the availability of cultural ecosystem services were found to have the highest impact on the level of support for coastal realignment, while the importance attached to provisioning, regulating and supporting ecosystem services was notably lower. In consequence, to increase public support, it will be essential to minimize the loss of cultural ecosystem services, or better yet, find ways to increase cultural ecosystem services through coastal realignment, for instance by creating opportunities for recreation and tourism.

How generalization relates to the exploration-exploitation tradeoff

It is known that animals foraging in the wild must balance their levels of exploitation and exploration so as to maximize resource consumption. This usually manifests as an area-restricted search strategy, such that animals tend to exploit environmental patches and make long excursions between patches. This optimal foraging strategy, however, relies on an underlying assumption: nearby locations yield similar resources. Here, we offer an explanation as to how animals utilize this assumption, which implicitly involves generalization. We also describe the computational mechanisms hypothesized to incorporate factors of exploitation, exploration, and generalization, thus, providing a more holistic picture of animal search strategies. Moreover, we connect this foraging behavior to cognition in general. As such, we suggest that cognitive processes, particularly those involved in sequential decision-making, reuse the computational principles grafted into neural activity by the evolution of optimal foraging. We speculate as to what neurobiological substrates may be using area-restricted search, as well as how a model of exploitation, exploration, and generalization can inform psychopathology.

Distribution and spatial autocorrelation of physical-water attributes of an Oxisol

Spatial autocorrelation, which in this work was calculated using Moran's bivariate analysis, can be defined as the coincidence of similar values in nearby locations, or the absence of randomness of a variable due to its spatial distribution. Therefore, the objective of this study is to analyze the distribution and spatial autocorrelation of physical attributes of an Oxisol. The experiment was carried out in the irrigation and drainage area of the Universidade Federal de Viçosa, in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The soil in which the experimental meshes were installed was classified as a sandy clayey Oxisol. The attributes were determined: soil moisture on a dry basis, % (DB), soil moisture on a wet basis, % (WB), volumetric soil moisture, % (VS), particle density, g cm-1 (PD), sampled at different depths and within a grid of 90 georeferenced points. For spatial autocorrelation, the global Moran and local Moran indexes (LISA) were used as statistical tools. Bivariate analysis revealed that soil volumetric moisture is closely related to wet and dry basis moisture. It was also found that the surface particle density is related to the deeper layers of the soil, thus reinforcing that the solid fraction of a soil sample, without considering porosity, tends to remain constant. This happens because the predominant mineral constituents in soils are quartz, feldspars, and colloidal aluminum silicates, whose particle densities are around 2.65 g cm-3.

Spatial patterns of communal violence in sub-Saharan Africa

Communal violence is a major source of insecurity within and across borders, sparking significant displacement flows and disturbing livelihoods. While conflict literature has shed light onto its causes, the existing research has paid little systematic attention to the spatial dynamics of communal violence. We distinguish between spillover of violence and spillover of predictors. Spillover of violence is defined as conflict incidences occurring as a direct response to communal violence in a nearby location. Spillover of predictors describes instances of communal violence that occur due to nearby conflict-inducing factors. We clarify theoretical pathways for both spillover processes, focusing on drought exposure affecting not locally but in nearby areas. Applying spatial models, we test the expectations regarding nearby violence breeding violence and nearby drought increasing violence with data on incidences of communal violence for sub-Saharan Africa (1990–2014). Our results demonstrate that communal violence explains nearby communal violence through different spillover processes. We also find evidence for an increase in violence due to exposure from neighborhood droughts as well as other conflict-inducing factors.

Reaping the premium in urban redevelopment

IntroductionThis paper investigates new new-built premium in urban redevelopments. Constructing new homes on urban redevelopment sites entails additional investments in reshaped lay-out, refurbished infrastructure, and upgraded outdoor areas. These improvements are expected to yield new-build premiums when the new units are put on the market, with ‘premium’ defined as the extra price that a developer asks for, compared to similar units in the second-hand market, in nearby locations. We askDo urban redevelopment schemes create extra new-build premiums? Does the organisation of redevelopments affect the size of the premium and who harvests it? Method and dataIn focus here are redevelopment schemes in Oslo, Norway, 2002–2015. It distinguishes between four types of developments: greyfield, brownfield and two kinds of infill. This distinction is applied to compare new-build premiums in various redevelopments. As the value-added from upgraded redevelopment may spill over to adjacent neighbourhoods, we also analyse whether such neighbourhoods experience hikes in house-prices. Our dataset consists of sales transactions from approx. 90,000 second-hand house sales and 19,000 new house sales. Results/findingsThe premium for new-builds in relation to second-hand sales varies significantly among the types of development. Units in small infill developments entail significantly higher new-built premiums than units in large brownfield- or greyfield redevelopments. Moreover, some schemes show a negative new-build premium. Examination of existing houses nearby shows a hike in prices in the time-span in question. We conclude that the new-build premium is low, and that developers fail to harvest full new-build premiums in urban redevelopment schemes. DiscussionIn interpreting our findings, we revisit ‘rent-gap theory’ and its emphasis on attracting investment to rundown central areas. Concurrence in scale, design and time helps to explain the differences across types of redevelopments, and why what might be expected to be new-build premiums instead raise prices in existing neighbouring areas.

FeduLPM: Federated Unsupervised Learning-Based Predictive Model for Speed Control in Customizable Automotive Variants

Over speeding of vehicles is considered as one of the most important factors for occurring road accidents. An advanced sensor technology motivates the researchers to move towards automatic vehicles, whereas the speed decisions were taken based on the information collected from the sensor. Beyond its success, the expensiveness, and implementation failure in bad road conditions make it less practicable. In this work, a novel FeduLPM technique has been proposed for controlling the speed in customizable automotive variants using data analysis from the location of the accident. Instead of sharing the whole accident data on a Heroku server to train the model, a pre-trained Random Forest algorithm is designed on each nearby location and the accident data is updated on the local model. The attributes such as weather, automotive variants, time, location, and zone geometry are taken for providing an exact speed limit. Finally, trained parameters of the local model are aggregated; then a global model is generated and distributed to local clients without sharing local data. The experimental setup is implemented using a Python-based ML algorithm that draws information from the vehicle based on the gathered attributes. The proposed FeduLPM achieved 96.7% of accuracy while processing with the different locations of Bangalore city. From the experimental results, the proposed FeduLPM is a better assistant to bike and car drivers by providing an optimum solution to prevent accidents.

Religion and British Raj Religious Development in Multan Division during Colonial Period

Like other regions and countries around the world, religion and religious development have remained an important aspect of South Asian culture. In some instances, people's religious habits were thought to be the primary determinant of their identity. This article aims to comprehend and identify the fundamental theological tendencies that affected Multan's division under British administration. South Asia in general and Multan in particular have seen a movement toward a diversity of religious views. Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus were the most well-known and prominent religious groups that contributed to Multani culture. Christianity was the new religion that took off in Multan and other nearby locations. There were a few locals who converted to the new religion, but the number of conversions to the new infrastructure of religious buildings (churches), which became a part of Multani society, was not great. In this research study, only the materials that have been documented, both primary and secondary sources are used. According to the study's findings, religious peace predated the arrival of the British and was a feature of society. However, as rulers changed and society and culture changed, a number of problems arose

Water and Geological Assessment in the Micro-Watersheds of the Alkaline Rocks of Tanguá and Soarinho in Rio de Janeiro State

Alkaline bodies of Tanguá and Soarinho in Rio de Janeiro present drainage areas that form the sources of the Soarinho and Caceribu Rivers. Due to its water and geological importance, we sought to investigate the relation between alkaline rocks and water bodies and the possible consequences of mining activity, as well as the use and occupation of land in water quality. Initially, the magnetometric profile was traced to confirm whether the locations selected for sample collection were located in the alkaline region. Then, water and sediment collections were carried out from the bed at three points on the Soarinho River and one point on the Caceribu River, all inserted in the drainages of the Soarinho and Tanguá alkaline massifs. Parameters necessary to calculate the Water Quality Index (WQI) and those related to contamination by mining activities were analyzed. Chemical analysis of the bed material sought to identify the deposition of contaminants. The context of alkaline rock interaction and water influence is confirmed through geophysical and lithogeochemical techniques through location maps and comparative results of bed material and direct samples of alkaline rocks that showed similar constitutions. In general, the WQI presented a median result, meeting the main requirements for appropriate water for conventional treatment aimed at public supply, and no indicators of contamination by mining activities were found, however, at point P3, representative of the headwaters of the Soarinho River, there were significant changes in BOD and fecal coliforms indicating direct discharge of domestic sewage in a nearby location. The results of the analyzes downstream of this point demonstrate the water bodies dilution capacity.

Mean-shift exploration in shape assembly of robot swarms

The fascinating collective behaviors of biological systems have inspired extensive studies on shape assembly of robot swarms. Here, we propose a strategy for shape assembly of robot swarms based on the idea of mean-shift exploration: when a robot is surrounded by neighboring robots and unoccupied locations, it would actively give up its current location by exploring the highest density of nearby unoccupied locations in the desired shape. This idea is realized by adapting the mean-shift algorithm, which is an optimization technique widely used in machine learning for locating the maxima of a density function. The proposed strategy empowers robot swarms to assemble highly complex shapes with strong adaptability, as verified by experiments with swarms of 50 ground robots. The comparison between the proposed strategy and the state-of-the-art demonstrates its high efficiency especially for large-scale swarms. The proposed strategy can also be adapted to generate interesting behaviors including shape regeneration, cooperative cargo transportation, and complex environment exploration.

Fast and Calibrationless Low-Rank Parallel Imaging Reconstruction through Unrolled Deep Learning Estimation of Multi-Channel Spatial Support Maps.

Low-rank technique has emerged as a powerful calibrationless alternative for parallel magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Calibrationless low-rank reconstruction, such as low-rank modeling of local k-space neighborhoods (LORAKS), implicitly exploits both coil sensitivity modulations and the finite spatial support constraint of MR images through an iterative low-rank matrix recovery process. Although powerful, this slow iteration process is computationally demanding and reconstruction requires empirical rank optimization, hampering its robust applications for high-resolution volume imaging. This paper proposes a fast and calibrationless low-rank reconstruction of undersampled multi-slice MR brain data, based on the finite spatial support constraint reformulation with a direct deep learning estimation of spatial support maps. The iteration process of low-rank reconstruction is unrolled into a complex-valued network by training on fully-sampled multi-slice axial brain datasets acquired from the same MR coil system. To utilize coil-subject geometric parameters available for datasets, the model minimizes a hybrid loss on two sets of spatial support maps, corresponding to brain data at the original slice locations as actually acquired and nearby locations within the standard reference coordinate. This deep learning framework was integrated with LORAKS reconstruction and was evaluated with publically available gradient-echo T1-weighted brain datasets. It directly produced high-quality multi-channel spatial support maps from undersampled data, enabling rapid reconstruction without iteration. Moreover, it led to effective reductions of artifacts and noise amplification at high acceleration. In summary, our proposed deep learning framework offers a new strategy to advance the existing calibrationless low-rank reconstruction, rendering it computationally efficient, simple, and robust in practice.

A mid-infrared laser microscope for the time-resolved study of light-induced protein conformational changes.

We have developed a confocal laser microscope operating in the mid-infrared range for the study of light-sensitive proteins, such as rhodopsins. The microscope features a co-aligned infrared and visible illumination path for the selective excitation and probing of proteins located in the IR focus only. An external-cavity tunable quantum cascade laser provides a wavelength tuning range (5.80-6.35 µm or 1570-1724cm-1) suitable for studying protein conformational changes as a function of time delay after visible light excitation with a pulsed LED. Using cryogen-free detectors, the relative changes in the infrared absorption of rhodopsin thin films around 10-4 have been observed with a time resolution down to 30ms. The measured full-width at half maximum of the Airy disk at λ = 6.08 µm in transmission mode with a confocal arrangement of apertures is 6.6 µm or 1.1λ. Dark-adapted sample replacement at the beginning of each photocycle is then enabled by exchanging the illuminated thin-film location with the microscope mapping stage synchronized to data acquisition and LED excitation and by averaging hundreds of time traces acquired in different nearby locations within a homogeneous film area. We demonstrate that this instrument provides crucial advantages for time-resolved IR studies of rhodopsin thin films with a slow photocycle. Time-resolved studies of inhomogeneous samples may also be possible with the presented instrument.