Many bridges and other structures worldwide present a lack of maintenance or a need for rehabilitation. The first step in the rehabilitation process is to perform a bridge inspection to know the ...bridge′s current state. Routine bridge inspections are usually based only on visual recognition. In this paper, a methodology for bridge inspections in communication routes using images acquired by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flights is proposed. This provides access to the upper parts of the structure safely and without traffic disruptions. Then, a standardized and systematized novel image acquisition protocol is applied for data acquisition. Afterwards, the images are studied by civil engineers for damage identification and description. Then, specific structural inspection forms are completed using the acquired information. Recommendations about the need of new and more detailed inspections should be included at this stage when needed. The suggested methodology was tested on two railway bridges in France. Image acquisition of these structures was performed using an UAV for its ability to provide an expert assessment of the damage level. The main advantage of this method is that it makes it possible to safely accurately identify diverse damages in structures without the need for a specialised engineer to go to the site. Moreover, the videos can be watched by as many engineers as needed with no personal movement. The main objective of this work is to describe the systematized methodology for the development of bridge inspection tasks using a UAV system. According to this proposal, the in situ inspection by a specialised engineer is replaced by images and videos obtained from an UAV flight by a trained flight operator. To this aim, a systematized image/videos acquisition method is defined for the study of the morphology and typology of the structural elements of the inspected bridges. Additionally, specific inspection forms are proposed for every type of structural element. The recorded information will allow structural engineers to perform a postanalysis of the damage affecting the bridges and to evaluate the subsequent recommendations.
Oceans play a key role in energy storage in the global Earth–Ocean–Atmosphere system. Within this framework, the knowledge of past evolution and future trends of sea surface temperature is crucial ...for the future climate scenarios. Previous studies have highlighted the role of sea surface temperature as an important ingredient for the development and/or intensification of heavy precipitation events in the Western Mediterranean basin but have also highlighted its role in heat waves in Europe. In this study, a consistent warming trend has been found for daily sea surface temperature data series derived from satellites (1982–2016) for the whole Mediterranean region and for different temporal scales, from daily to monthly, seasonal and decadal estimates. Additionally, spatial clustering analysis has been run to look for its spatial structure. Two main distribution modes have been found for sea surface temperature in winter and summer, while spring and fall show transitional regimes. Winter mode shows a north-to-south increasing gradient banded structure while summer regime presents a set of well-differentiated areas.
We examined the phylogenetic history of Linaria with special emphasis on the Mediterranean sect. Supinae (44 species). We revealed extensive highly supported incongruence among two nuclear (ITS, ...AGT1) and two plastid regions (rpl32-trnL(UAG), trnS-trnG). Coalescent simulations, a hybrid detection test and species tree inference in *BEAST revealed that incomplete lineage sorting and hybridization may both be responsible for the incongruent pattern observed. Additionally, we present a multilabelled *BEAST species tree as an alternative approach that allows the possibility of observing multiple placements in the species tree for the same taxa. That permitted the incorporation of processes such as hybridization within the tree while not violating the assumptions of the *BEAST model. This methodology is presented as a functional tool to disclose the evolutionary history of species complexes that have experienced both hybridization and incomplete lineage sorting. The drastic climatic events that have occurred in the Mediterranean since the late Miocene, including the Quaternary-type climatic oscillations, may have made both processes highly recurrent in the Mediterranean flora.
Human induced environmental change may require rapid adaptation of plant populations and crops, but the genomic basis of environmental adaptation remain poorly understood. We analysed polymorphic ...loci from the perennial crop Medicago sativa (alfalfa or lucerne) and the annual legume model species M. truncatula to search for a common set of candidate genes that might contribute to adaptation to abiotic stress in both annual and perennial Medicago species. We identified a set of candidate genes of adaptation associated with environmental gradients along the distribution of the two Medicago species. Candidate genes for each species were detected in homologous genomic linkage blocks using genome‐environment (GEA) and genome‐phenotype association analyses. Hundreds of GEA candidate genes were species‐specific, of these, 13.4% (M. sativa) and 24% (M. truncatula) were also significantly associated with phenotypic traits. A set of 168 GEA candidates were shared by both species, which was 25.4% more than expected by chance. When combined, they explained a high proportion of variance for certain phenotypic traits associated with adaptation. Genes with highly conserved functions dominated among the shared candidates and were enriched in gene ontology terms that have shown to play a central role in drought avoidance and tolerance mechanisms by means of cellular shape modifications and other functions associated with cell homeostasis. Our results point to the existence of a molecular basis of adaptation to abiotic stress in Medicago determined by highly conserved genes and gene functions. We discuss these results in light of the recently proposed omnigenic model of complex traits.
Floral nectar spurs are widely considered a key innovation promoting diversification in angiosperms by means of pollinator shifts. We investigated the macroevolutionary dynamics of nectar spurs in ...the tribe Antirrhineae (Plantaginaceae), which contains 29 genera and 300–400 species (70–80% spurred). The effect of nectar spurs on diversification was tested, with special focus on Linaria, the genus with the highest number of species.
We generated the most comprehensive phylogeny of Antirrhineae to date and reconstructed the evolution of nectar spurs. Diversification rate heterogeneity was investigated using trait-dependent and trait-independent methods, and accounting for taxonomic uncertainty. The association between changes in spur length and speciation was examined within Linaria using model testing and ancestral state reconstructions.
We inferred four independent acquisitions of nectar spurs. Diversification analyses revealed that nectar spurs are loosely associated with increased diversification rates. Detected rate shifts were delayed by 5–15 Myr with respect to the acquisition of the trait. Active evolution of spur length, fitting a speciational model, was inferred in Linaria, which is consistent with a scenario of pollinator shifts driving diversification.
Nectar spurs played a role in diversification of the Antirrhineae, but diversification dynamics can only be fully explained by the complex interaction of multiple biotic and abiotic factors.
A complete contextual marketing platform including an indoor positioning system (IPS) for smartphones is proposed and evaluated to later be deployed in large infrastructures, such as malls. To this ...end, we design and implement a novel methodology based on location-as-a-service (LAAS), comprising all the required phases of IPS generation: mall digital map creation, the tools/procedures for offline calibration fingerprint acquisition, the location algorithm, the smartphone app acquiring the fingerprint data, and a validation procedure. To select an appropriate fingerprint location algorithm, a comparison among K-nearest neighbors (KNN), support vector machine (SVM), and Freeloc is accomplished by employing a set of different smartphones in two malls and assessing different occupancy levels. We demonstrate that our solution can be quickly deployed at shop level accuracy in any new location, resulting in a robust and scalable proposal.
Secukinumab is a first-in-class interleukin 17A monoclonal antibody that has demonstrated an excellent safety and efficacy profile in phase 3 studies.
To evaluate the effectiveness of secukinumab in ...daily clinical practice and to understand the clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of patients treated with secukinumab in clinical settings.
In this multicenter prospective observational study, we recruited adult patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis from 12 hospitals in Spain during January-December 2016. These patients were treated with secukinumab and prospectively followed at 12-week intervals for 52 weeks.
In total, 158 patients were recruited to the study. A Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score improvement ≥75% over baseline (PASI-75) was achieved by 57%, 83.5%, 89%, and 78.5% of patients at weeks 4, 12, 24, and 52, respectively. PASI-90 was achieved in 27.8%, 62%, 64.6%, and 63.2% of patients at weeks 4, 12, 24, and 52, respectively; PASI-75 and PASI-90 responders were significantly more common among patients with a body mass index <30 kg/cm2 and patients without previous biologic therapy failures.
Observational study. Time from onset of psoriasis was not evaluated.
Secukinumab is a safe treatment with effectiveness rates similar to those found in its phase 3 studies. These rates endure up to a year from start of treatment.
•We introduce a general approach to decompose overall inefficiency.•We compare it with the traditional economic decomposition.•Our approach ensures that allocative inefficiency is not ...overestimated.•We provide an empirical example.
Considering any graph technical inefficiency measure, we show that the so-called standard or traditional approach for decomposing profit inefficiency relying on Fenchel-Mahler inequalities obtained from duality theory, establishes that profit inefficiency is greater than or equal to the product of technical inefficiency times a positive factor expressed in monetary units. This product is identified as the technical profit inefficiency and its difference with respect to the profit inefficiency as the allocative profit inefficiency. Dividing profit inefficiency by the mentioned positive factor one obtains the normalized (units’ invariant) profit inefficiency of the firm, which is a pure number, and can be decomposed into the sum of technical inefficiency and the normalized allocative profit inefficiency, usually called allocative inefficiency. We propose a new decomposition based on equalities that starts from the input and output slacks connecting the firm with the frontier benchmark, obtained through the pre-specified technical inefficiency measure. Profit inefficiency is then decomposed into the value of the technological gap and the profit inefficiency of the frontier benchmark. Expressing the value of the technological gap as the product of the technical inefficiency times a certain normalizing factor, we deduce a new normalized profit inefficiency decomposition. Our decomposition ensures that the allocative efficiency of a firm corresponds to that of its benchmark on the frontier and therefore avoids the possibility of overestimating it. We compare the traditional and the general direct approach and show that the new decomposition is conceptually sound and more accurate, with the only exception of the family of directional distance functions, for which both decompositions are equivalent.
Classical molecular dynamics simulations were carried out to quantify the behavior of fullerenes in water, under liquid phase and liquid–vapor conditions. Different molalities of fullerene were ...considered in the study. Radial distribution functions, static dielectric constant and equation of state were evaluated in liquid phase. Direct liquid–vapor coexistence simulations of water with fullerene added were conducted to explore density profiles, liquid–vapor coexistence curve, pressure tensor components and surface tension variations with respect to water. An all-atom fullerene model studied by Monticelli and the SPC/ɛ description of water were used. At ambient conditions fullerene–fullerene and fullerene-water correlations decreased as molality increased. In turn, the static dielectric constant decreased due that fullerenes hinder the dipolar orientation of water molecules. As temperature increased, the static dielectric constant lowered. Part of the study was conducted at 373 K from 10 to 24 kbar, revealing that density of the system increased as molality was higher while fullerene-fullerene correlations decreased and fullerene-water correlations increased slightly. Concerning the static dielectric constant, a decrease was observed due that fullerenes and fullerene aggregates disturbed water structure as molality increased. As the system is compressed at a fixed molality, fullerenes become more uniformly distributed and the dielectric constant increases. Therefore, increasing the pressure is a mechanism to force the dipolar orientation of water molecules. On the other hand, liquid–vapor coexistence was studied from 280 to 650 K using molalities from 0.037 to 0.695 mol/kg. Liquid–vapor simulations revealed that the location of fullerenes and the formation of aggregates affect the behavior of surface tension. Fullerenes can locate at the liquid–vapor interfaces forming aggregates that obstruct the pass of water molecules to the vapor, so surface tension increases slightly with respect to water. At 0.695 mol/kg, larger clusters were observed but they located predominantly within the liquid phase and therefore acted in the opposite direction, that is, they favored the migration of water molecules to the vapor and surface tension dropped. In addition, a peculiar behavior was observed for temperatures above 500 K: surface tension increased its value as temperature increased. This behavior could be attributed to the fact that at such high molality the calculated surface tension might not longer correspond to liquid–vapor interfaces, instead it could be related to a sort of solid–liquid interface that have formed into the system. These calculations set the basis for improving the description of fullerene/water interactions as more experimental information becomes available and also serve as reference data in the design of interaction parameters to model water-soluble fullerenes.
Aim
To investigate factors that explain the spatial pattern of genetic diversity in three closely related species (Linaria glacialis, Linaria nevadensis and Chaenorhinum glareosum) endemic to a ...fragile high mountain ecosystem.
Location
The alpine belt of Sierra Nevada, Spain.
Methods
We analysed the spatial pattern of cpDNA diversity of the three species. To explain the distribution of genetic diversity, we investigated the effect of topographic features and the evolutionary history of the species (demography, habitat availability and colonization dynamics).
Results
Genetic diversity was heterogeneous across the landscape. We found moderate positive correlation values between genetic diversity indices of the two Linaria species. We also observed moderate negative correlation values between genetic diversity indices of C. glareosum and those of L. glacialis and L. nevadensis. Topographic variables correlated positively with genetic diversity of the Linaria species and negatively with genetic diversity of C. glareosum. Bayesian skyline plots (BSPs) displayed a shared demographic pattern with a population size stabilization/increase since the LGM (the last 21 kyr) in all three species. Discrete phylogeographical analyses showed similar patterns of westward diffusion for L. nevadensis and C. glareosum. Species distribution models pointed to similar range dynamics in all three species, with a reduction in range size since the LGM.
Main conclusions
Different dispersal abilities, demographic trends and colonization patterns can hardly explain the differences in spatial patterns of genetic diversity between the Linaria species and C. glareosum. In contrast, topographic features seem to be an important factor to explain the distribution of genetic diversity in the alpine belt of Sierra Nevada. We point to a relevant role of microniche partitioning in determining patterns of genetic diversity distribution in alpine Mediterranean ecosystems. Furthermore, we highlight the role of microhabitat heterogeneity in the maintenance of distinct lineages, species and genetic diversity in high mountain biodiversity hotspots.
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