In this analysis we developed and applied a geographically-resolved method to calculate the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) of new power plants on a county-by-county basis while including ...estimates of some environmental externalities. We calculated the LCOE for each county of the contiguous United States for 12 power plant technologies. The minimum LCOE option for each county varies based on local conditions, capital and fuel costs, environmental externalities, and resource availability. We considered ten scenarios that vary input assumptions. We present the results in a map format to facilitate comparisons by fuel, technology, and location. For our reference analysis, which includes a cost of $62/tCO2 for CO2 emissions natural gas combined cycle, wind, and nuclear are most often the lowest-LCOE option. While the average cost increases when internalizing the environmental externalities (carbon and air pollutants) is small for some technologies, the local cost differences are as high as $0.62/kWh for coal (under our reference analysis). These results display format, and online tools could serve as an educational tool for stakeholders when considering which technologies might or might not be a good fit for a given locality subject to system integration considerations.
•We propose a method to add externalities to LCOE.•We present the least cost technology for every county in the US.•The cheapest technology depends on many characteristics of that locale.•We present online tools for users to change our assumptions.•Our tools are useful in discussing the impact of policy on the cost of electricity.
Exposure to red blood cell (RBC) transfusions has been associated with increased mortality after cardiac surgery. We examined long-term survival for cardiac surgical patients who received one or two ...RBC units during index hospitalization.
Nine thousand seventy-nine consecutive patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft, valve, or coronary artery bypass graft/valve surgery at eight centers in northern New England during 2001-2004 were examined after exclusions. A probabilistic match between the regional registry and the Social Security Administration's Death Master File determined mortality through June 30, 2006. Cox Proportional Hazard and propensity methods were used to calculate adjusted hazard ratios.
Thirty-six percent of patients (n = 3254) were exposed to one or two RBC units. Forty-three percent of RBCs were given intraoperatively, 56% in the postoperative period and 1% were preoperative. Patients transfused were more likely to be anemic, older, smaller, female and with more comorbid illness. Survival was significantly decreased for all patients exposed to 1 or 2 U of RBCs during hospitalization for cardiac surgery compared with those who received none (P < 0.001). After adjustment for patient and disease characteristics, patients exposed to 1 or 2 U of RBCs had a 16% higher long-term mortality risk (adjusted hazard ratios = 1.16, 95% CI: 1.01-1.34, P = 0.035).
Exposure to 1 or 2 U of RBCs was associated with a 16% increased hazard of decreased survival after cardiac surgery.
In the absence of durable host resistance among commercial cultivars, chemical management continues to be an essential component of disease control in apple production. Apple powdery mildew, caused ...by the ascomycete
, is largely managed with regular fungicide applications from the host phenological stages of tight cluster to terminal bud growth set, with applications typically being made in a prophylactic manner irrespective of existing disease pressure. Here we evaluated two management programs that aligned fungicide applications to specific weather thresholds conducive to powdery mildew development using a rotation of single-site fungicides and sulfur. In three separate orchards among four cultivars, we compared powdery mildew disease progression over the growing season for each of the weather factor-based programs and a typical calendar-based application program. In each year of the trial, we found that management programs with weather-based fungicide applications provided levels of disease control similar to the calendar program but required 50 to 83.3% fewer mildew-specific fungicide applications throughout the growing season. Our results provide a framework with which to evaluate future weather-based management programs for apple powdery mildew management. This knowledge could be implemented in the creation of a powdery mildew disease management decision support system to better inform and aid fungicide application programs for continued sustainable apple production in the northeast United States.
Drug repurposing can accelerate the identification of effective compounds for clinical use against SARS-CoV-2, with the advantage of pre-existing clinical safety data and an established supply chain. ...RNA viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 manipulate cellular pathways and induce reorganization of subcellular structures to support their life cycle. These morphological changes can be quantified using bioimaging techniques. In this work, we developed DEEMD: a computational pipeline using deep neural network models within a multiple instance learning framework, to identify putative treatments effective against SARS-CoV-2 based on morphological analysis of the publicly available RxRx19a dataset. This dataset consists of fluorescence microscopy images of SARS-CoV-2 non-infected cells and infected cells, with and without drug treatment. DEEMD first extracts discriminative morphological features to generate cell morphological profiles from the non-infected and infected cells. These morphological profiles are then used in a statistical model to estimate the applied treatment efficacy on infected cells based on similarities to non-infected cells. DEEMD is capable of localizing infected cells via weak supervision without any expensive pixel-level annotations. DEEMD identifies known SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors, such as Remdesivir and Aloxistatin, supporting the validity of our approach. DEEMD can be explored for use on other emerging viruses and datasets to rapidly identify candidate antiviral treatments in the future. Our implementation is available online at https://www.github.com/Sadegh-Saberian/DEEMD .
An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) classification of the orders and families of angiosperms is presented. Several new orders are recognized: Boraginales, Dilleniales, Icacinales, ...Metteniusiales and Vahliales. This brings the total number of orders and families recognized in the APG system to 64 and 416, respectively. We propose two additional informal major clades, superrosids and superasterids, that each comprise the additional orders that are included in the larger clades dominated by the rosids and asterids. Families that made up potentially monofamilial orders, Dasypogonaceae and Sabiaceae, are instead referred to Arecales and Proteales, respectively. Two parasitic families formerly of uncertain positions are now placed: Cynomoriaceae in Saxifragales and Apodanthaceae in Cucurbitales. Although there is evidence that some families recognized in APG III are not monophyletic, we make no changes in Dioscoreales and Santalales relative to APG III and leave some genera in Lamiales unplaced (e.g. Peltanthera). These changes in familial circumscription and recognition have all resulted from new results published since APG III, except for some changes simply due to nomenclatural issues, which include substituting Asphodelaceae for Xanthorrhoeaceae (Asparagales) and Francoaceae for Melianthaceae (Geraniales); however, in Francoaceae we also include Bersamaceae, Ledocarpaceae, Rhynchothecaceae and Vivianiaceae. Other changes to family limits are not drastic or numerous and are mostly focused on some members of the lamiids, especially the former Icacinaceae that have long been problematic with several genera moved to the formerly monogeneric Metteniusaceae, but minor changes in circumscription include Aristolochiaceae (now including Lactoridaceae and Hydnoraceae; Aristolochiales), Maundiaceae (removed from Juncaginaceae; Alismatales), Restionaceae (now re‐including Anarthriaceae and Centrolepidaceae; Poales), Buxaceae (now including Haptanthaceae; Buxales), Peraceae (split from Euphorbiaceae; Malpighiales), recognition of Petenaeaceae (Huerteales), Kewaceae, Limeaceae, Macarthuriaceae and Microteaceae (all Caryophyllales), Petiveriaceae split from Phytolaccaceae (Caryophyllales), changes to the generic composition of Ixonanthaceae and Irvingiaceae (with transfer of Allantospermum from the former to the latter; Malpighiales), transfer of Pakaraimaea (formerly Dipterocarpaceae) to Cistaceae (Malvales), transfer of Borthwickia, Forchhammeria, Stixis and Tirania (formerly all Capparaceae) to Resedaceae (Brassicales), Nyssaceae split from Cornaceae (Cornales), Pteleocarpa moved to Gelsemiaceae (Gentianales), changes to the generic composition of Gesneriaceae (Sanango moved from Loganiaceae) and Orobanchaceae (now including Lindenbergiaceae and Rehmanniaceae) and recognition of Mazaceae distinct from Phrymaceae (all Lamiales).
•The effect of narrow-bandwidth lighting on plant volatile emission was tested.•Volatiles known to affect aroma and flavor are affected by light treatment.•Petunia flowers show strong effects of ...light treatment in volatile emission.•Specific volatiles respond differently in strawberry and tomato.•The methods suggest light may be used to control flavor and aroma.
Light intensity, duration, direction, and wavelength are informative to plants. The biochemical circuits that connect specific light wavelengths to expression of specific genes and the metabolic networks they govern have been well defined. However, little emphasis has been placed on how discrete wavelengths of light, alone or in combination, may be applied to manipulate postharvest qualities of high-value horticultural crops. Using narrow-bandwidth LED light we test the hypothesis that discrete light wavelengths can affect the accumulation of volatile compounds known to affect aroma or taste in select flower and fruit products. Volatile benzenoid/phenylpropanoid emission from petunia flowers could be altered with light application. Levels of a key floral volatile, 2-phenylethanol, increased with a red and far-red light treatment. Similar experiments demonstrated that fruit volatile profiles of tomato, strawberry, and blueberry can be manipulated with specific light treatments. These results suggest that compounds affecting sensory qualities of flowers and fruits can be modified by adjustment of ambient light conditions. These findings open new areas of inquiry about how the fragrance and flavor of flowers and fruits may be improved with simple changes in postharvest light conditions.
We used DNA sequencing and gel blot surveys to assess the integrity of the chloroplast gene infA, which codes for translation initiation factor 1, in >300 diverse angiosperms. Whereas most ...angiosperms appear to contain an intact chloroplast infA gene, the gene has repeatedly become defunct in ∼24 separate lineages of angiosperms, including almost all rosid species. In four species in which chloroplast infA is defunct, transferred and expressed copies of the gene were found in the nucleus, complete with putative chloroplast transit peptide sequences. The transit peptide sequences of the nuclear infA genes from soybean and Arabidopsis were shown to be functional by their ability to target green fluorescent protein to chloroplasts in vivo. Phylogenetic analysis of infA sequences and assessment of transit peptide homology indicate that the four nuclear infA genes are probably derived from four independent gene transfers from chloroplast to nuclear DNA during angiosperm evolution. Considering this and the many separate losses of infA from chloroplast DNA, the gene has probably been transferred many more times, making infA by far the most mobile chloroplast gene known in plants.
The purpose of this study was to examine how meanings ascribed to sex and commitment vary based on educational background, gender, and other correlates using a large sample of college-attending and ...non-college emerging adults (ages 18–25;
N
= 669). Findings from our content analysis replicated previous research by identifying meanings focused on commitment (47.8%), flexibility (22.7%), and recreation (17.8%). We also found two additional meanings focused on finding a sexual connection (termed
Connectors
; 9.1%) and using sex to test relationship compatibility (termed
Testers
; 2.5%), which were not found in previous studies on sex and commitment. A greater proportion of women than men were in the Committers group, whereas a greater proportion of men than women were in the Recreationers group. A greater proportion of heterosexual than sexual minority participants were in the Committers group, whereas a greater proportion of sexual minority than heterosexual participants were in the Flexibles and Testers groups. A greater proportion of those in committed relationships than those in casual or no relationships were in the Committers group, whereas a greater proportion of those in casual relationships than those in committed or no relationships were in the Recreationers group. Those in the Recreationers group reported the greatest average number of hookup partners in the last 12 months (compared to all others), and those in the Recreationers and Testers groups reported the greatest average number of lifetime sexual partners (compared to all others). Implications for future research and sexual health education for emerging adults are discussed.
Move closer: The galliumgallium bond strength in terphenyl gallium(I) dimers ArGaGaAr (see figure) is similar to those in other molecules with closed shell interactions, implying that the GaGa bond ...in doubly reduced Na2ArGaGaAr is much closer to a single than a triple one.
A series of stable aryl gallium(I) terphenyl derivatives was synthesized and characterized spectroscopically, structurally and by density functional calculations. Dimeric structures with trans‐bent planar CGaGaC core arrangements were observed for (GaAr*‐4‐tBu)2 (7, Ar*‐4‐tBu=C6H2‐2,6(C6H2‐2,4,6‐iPr3)2‐4‐tBu) and (GaAr*‐4‐CF3)2 (8, Ar*‐4‐CF3=C6H2‐2,6(C6H2‐2,4,6‐iPr3)2‐4‐CF3), whereas monomeric structures featuring one coordinate gallium were observed for the more crowded complexes :GaAr*‐3,5‐iPr2 (10, Ar*‐3,5‐iPr2=C6H‐2,6(C6H2‐2,4‐6‐iPr3)2‐3,5‐iPr2) and GaAr′‐3,5‐iPr2 (11, Ar′‐3,5‐iPr2=C6H‐2,6(C6H3‐2,6‐iPr2)2‐3,5‐iPr2). Complexes 7 and 8 dissociate to monomers in hydrocarbon solution and their electronic spectra closely resemble those of 10 and 11 as well as those of Ar′GaGaAr′ (Ar′=C6H3‐2,6(C6H3‐2,6‐iPr3)2) and (GaAr*)n (Ar*=C6H3‐2,6(C6H2‐2,4,6‐iPr3)2). The calculations showed that the binding energies of the compounds are weak, resemble closed‐shell interactions and average ≈5 kcal mol−1, as in Ar*GaGaAr* with a lowest value of ≈−2 kcal mol−1 for monomeric 10 and a highest value ≈9 kcal mol−1 for the least crowded species Ar′GaGaAr′. The weak bonding in the complexes supports the view that the GaGa bonding in the previously published doubly reduced Na2Ar*GaGaAr* and Na2Ar′GaGaAr′ is also weak and is consistent with approximate single bonding.
Move closer: The galliumgallium bond strength in terphenyl gallium(I) dimers ArGaGaAr (see figure) is similar to those in other molecules with closed shell interactions, implying that the GaGa bond in doubly reduced Na2ArGaGaAr is much closer to a single than a triple one.
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