Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) is a species native to Western Asia that is able to pierce intact fruit during egg laying, causing it to be considered a fruit crop pest in many countries. Drosophila ...suzukii have a rapid expansion worldwide; occurrences were recorded in North America and Europe in 2008, and South America in 2013. Due to this rapid expansion, we modeled the potential distribution of this species using the Maximum Entropy Modeling (MaxEnt) algorithm and the Genetic Algorithm for Ruleset Production (GARP) using 407 sites with known occurrences worldwide and 11 predictor variables. After 1000 replicates, the value of the average area under the curve (AUC) of the model predictions with 1000 replicates was 0.97 for MaxEnt and 0.87 for GARP, indicating that both models had optimal performances. The environmental variables that most influenced the prediction of the MaxEnt model were the annual mean temperature, the maximum temperature of the warmest month, the mean temperature of the coldest quarter and the annual precipitation. The models indicated high environmental suitability, mainly in temperate and subtropical areas in the continents of Asia, Europe and North and South America, where the species has already been recorded. The potential for further invasions of the African and Australian continents is predicted due to the environmental suitability of these areas for this species.
The importance of hotel environmental performance has been acknowledged by scholars. However, the factors that drive hotel environmental performance have not been thoroughly investigated. To address ...this gap, and drawing on the resource-based view perspective, this study investigated the impact of top management green commitment and green intellectual capital on green human resource management and, in turn, its impact on hotel environmental performance. The mediating role of green human resource management was also examined. To collect data from 800 hotel employees in Manila, a longitudinal study using an online survey was employed. The findings suggest that top management green commitment and green intellectual capital had a direct impact on green human resource management and hotel environmental performance. The results also support the mediated relationships. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed. The limitations and areas of future research are outlined.
Most epistemic uncertainty within data-driven landslide susceptibility assessment results from errors in landslide inventories, difficulty in identifying and mapping landslide causes and decisions ...related with the modelling procedure. In this work we evaluate and discuss differences observed on landslide susceptibility maps resulting from: (i) the selection of the statistical method; (ii) the selection of the terrain mapping unit; and (iii) the selection of the feature type to represent landslides in the model (polygon versus point). The work is performed in a single study area (Silveira Basin - 18.2km2 - Lisbon Region, Portugal) using a unique database of geo-environmental landslide predisposing factors and an inventory of 82 shallow translational slides.
The logistic regression, the discriminant analysis and two versions of the information value were used and we conclude that multivariate statistical methods perform better when computed over heterogeneous terrain units and should be selected to assess landslide susceptibility based on slope terrain units, geo-hydrological terrain units or census terrain units. However, evidence was found that the chosen terrain mapping unit can produce greater differences on final susceptibility results than those resulting from the chosen statistical method for modelling.
The landslide susceptibility should be assessed over grid cell terrain units whenever the spatial accuracy of landslide inventory is good. In addition, a single point per landslide proved to be efficient to generate accurate landslide susceptibility maps, providing the landslides are of small size, thus minimizing the possible existence of heterogeneities of predisposing factors within the landslide boundary.
Although during last years the ROC curves have been preferred to evaluate the susceptibility model's performance, evidence was found that the model with the highest AUC ROC is not necessarily the best landslide susceptibility model, namely when terrain mapping units are heterogeneous in size and reduced in number.
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•Multivariate statistical methods perform better when computed over heterogeneous terrain mapping units.•Landslide susceptibility should be assessed over grid cells when the spatial accuracy of landslide inventory is good.•A single point per landslide proved to be efficient to generate accurate landslide susceptibility maps•The model with the highest AUC ROC is not necessarily the best landslide susceptibility model.
It has been recognized that a number of mechanisms mediating the health benefits of beneficial bacterial cells do require viability. However, new terms such as paraprobiotic or postbiotic have ...emerged to denote that non-viable microbial cells, microbial fractions, or cell lysates might also offer physiological benefits to the host by providing additional bioactivity.
This review provides an overview of the postbiotic concept, evidence of their health benefits and possible signaling pathways involved in their protective effects, as well as perspectives for applications in foods and pharmaceuticals.
Postbiotics refers to soluble factors (products or metabolic byproducts), secreted by live bacteria, or released after bacterial lysis, such as enzymes, peptides, teichoic acids, peptidoglycan-derived muropeptides, polysaccharides, cell surface proteins, and organic acids. These postbiotics have drawn attention because of their clear chemical structure, safety dose parameters, long shelf life and the content of various signaling molecules which may have anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, anti-obesogenic, antihypertensive, hypocholesterolemic, anti-proliferative, and antioxidant activities. These properties suggest that postbiotics may contribute, to the improvement of host health by improving specific physiological functions, even though the exact mechanisms have not been entirely elucidated.
•Postbiotics comprise metabolites and/or cell-wall components released by probiotics.•Postbiotics may, together with probiotics, improve host health.•The exact mechanisms of postbiotic bioactivities have not been fully elucidated.
•The optimum pelletization conditions for pine sawdust were determined by RSM.•The best pellet quality was obtained with biomass moisture content of 16.6% at 80 °C.•Industrial quality pellets can be ...obtained from wood and residual biomass blends.•Contents of 30 wt% of almond shells and olive stones yield high quality pellets.
Pellets for industrial use were produced from blends of pine sawdust (PIN) and alternative residual biomasses in a pilot-scale pelletizer. The effect of the pelletization temperature (T = 50–80 °C) and biomass moisture content (MC = 14–20%) on pine sawdust pellet quality was studied by using response surface methodology (RSM). Pelletization performance was evaluated on the basis of the durability, bulk density, moisture content, lower heating value (LHV), energy density, diameter, length and density of the pellets. From the RSM analysis, a maximum durability value of 99.4% was obtained at T = 80 °C and MC = 16.6%. Under these conditions, all the parameters showed values within the required range of industrial pellet qualities, i.e., a bulk density of 616 kg/m3, a pellet moisture content of 7.6%, a lower heating value (as received) of 18 MJ/kg, a diameter of 6.2 mm and a length of 23.4 mm. Blends of pine sawdust with eleven unconventional biomass samples were then pelletized under the optimum conditions to obtain pellets for industrial use according to the categories of quality defined by ISO 17225-2. Blends of pine sawdust with almond shells (AS) and olive stones (OS) contents of up to 30 wt%, as well as with pine cone leafs (PCL) contents of up to 15 wt%, produced I1 pellets. Blends of pine sawdust with coffee dregs (CD), coffee husks (CH) and grape pomace (GP) proportions of up to 10 wt%, as well as with hazelnut shells (HS), miscanthus (MIS), pine kernel shells (PKS) and switchgrass (SG) contents of up to 15 wt%, and also with a PCL content of between 15 and 30 wt%, generated I3 class pellets. Classification was not possible for cocoa shells (CS) mixed with pine sawdust due to the low bulk density of the pellets. Energy consumption resulting from the pelletization of the blends was evaluated with values ranging from 0.09 to 0.33 kWh/kg, while the pelletization of pine sawdust required 0.18 kWh/kg. The addition of alternative biomass feedstocks to pine sawdust may therefore serve to reduce energy consumption in industrial pelletization.
The effect of separator pore size on lithium dendrite growth is assessed through the use of the phase field method (PFM). Dendrites are found to undergo concurrent electrodeposition and ...electrodissolution that define their local growth or shrinkage. Moreover, dendrites are observed to detach due to localized electrodissolution and generate metallic debris that is detrimental to battery performance. A critical current density exists below which dendrites are fully suppressed. An analytical model based on the performed PFM simulations allows to formulate the critical current density as a function of separator morphology and pore radius. Four distinct regimes of dendrite growth are identified: (i) the suppression regime, where dendrite growth is thermodynamically unfavorable; (ii) the permeable regime, where dendrite growth is prohibited beyond the first layer of the separator; (iii) the penetration regime, in which dendrites are stable within the channels of the separator; and (iv) the short circuit regime, where dendrites penetrate the entire width of the separator causing a short circuit. The identification of these regimes serve as a guideline to design improved separators.
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•A critical current density exists below which dendritic growth is fully suppressed.•Recharge conditions that favor dendrite detachment and “dead lithium,” are proposed.•The suppression, permeable, penetration, and short circuit regimes are identified.•A map as a function of morphology and C-rate to design safe separators is proposed.
The rotation rates in the deep interior and at the surface of 22 main-sequence stars with masses between 1.0 and 1.6 M⊙ are constrained by combining asteroseismological analysis with spectroscopic ...measurements. The asteroseismic data of each star are taken by the Kepler or CoRoT space mission. It is found that the difference between the surface rotation rate and the average rotation rate (excluding the convective core) of most of stars is small enough to suggest that an efficient process of angular momentum transport operates during and/or before the main-sequence stage of stars. If each of the surface convective zone and the underlying radiative zone, for individual stars, is assumed to rotate uniformly, the difference in the rotation rate between the two zones turns out to be no more than a factor of 2 in most of the stars independently of their ages.
•Microstructure arrays affect mechanical responses of SnBi, SnAg and SnZn alloys.•Mechanical behavior of solder alloys is compared with that of the Sn–40Pb alloy.•Analysis cost/ weight indexes and ...mechanical properties is proposed to select Pb-free alloys.
The aim of this paper is to develop a comparative evaluation of mechanical properties of as-cast Sn–Bi, Sn–Ag and Sn–Zn alloys as a function of the resulting microstructural arrays with a view to application as solder materials. The resulting microstructures, ultimate and yield tensile strengths and elongations of Sn–40wt.% Bi, Sn–3.5wt.% Ag and Sn–9wt.% Zn alloys were examined and compared with the corresponding results of the traditional Sn–40wt.% Pb solder alloy. Tensile tests were carried out using specimens selected from specific positions along the length of the directionally solidified castings and Hall–Petch type correlations have been proposed relating the resulting tensile properties of each alloy to a parametric scale of the microstructure. It was found that all Pb-free alloys examined comply with a compromise between compatible mechanical strength and environmental protection. The Sn–Bi alloy has the highest ultimate tensile strength of all alloys examined, while both Sn–Ag and Sn–Zn alloys are lighter and exhibited higher ductility than the Sn–Pb and Sn–Bi alloys.
We have used the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model to produce a small (three‐member) ensemble of simulations of the period 1950–2003. Comparison of model results against available observations ...shows that for the most part, the model is able to reproduce well the observed trends in zonal mean temperature and ozone, both as regards their magnitude and their distribution in latitude and altitude. Calculated trends in water vapor, on the other hand, are not at all consistent with observations from either the HALOE satellite instrument or the Boulder, Colorado, hygrosonde data set. We show that such lack of agreement is actually to be expected because water vapor has various sources of low‐frequency variability (heating due to volcanic eruptions, the quasi‐biennial oscillation and El Niño–Southern Oscillation) that can confound the determination of secular trends. The simulations also reveal the presence of other interesting behavior, such as the lack of any significant temperature trend near the mesopause, a decrease in the stratospheric age of air, and the rare occurrence of an extremely disturbed Southern Hemisphere winter.
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