Towards operational multi-GNSS tropospheric products at GFZ Potsdam

The assimilation of global navigation satellite system (GNSS) data has been proven to have a positive impact on weather forecasts. However, the impact is limited due to the fact that solely the zenith total delays (ZTDs) or integrated water vapor (IWV) derived from the GPS satellite constellation are utilized. Assimilation of more advanced products, such as slant total delays (STDs), from several satellite systems may lead to improved forecasts. This study shows a preparation step for the assimilation, i.e., the analysis of the multi-GNSS tropospheric advanced parameters: ZTDs, tropospheric gradients and STDs. Three solutions are taken into consideration: GPS-only, GPS–GLONASS (GR) and GPS–GLONASS–Galileo (GRE). The GNSS estimates are calculated using the operational EPOS.P8 software developed at GFZ. The ZTDs retrieved with this software are currently being operationally assimilated by weather services, while the STDs and tropospheric gradients are being tested for this purpose. The obtained parameters are compared with the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA5 reanalysis. The results show that all three GNSS solutions show similar level of agreement with the ERA5 model. For ZTDs, the agreement with ERA5 results in biases of approx. 2 mm and standard deviations (SDs) of 8.5 mm. The statistics are slightly better for the GRE solution compared to the other solutions. For tropospheric gradients, the biases are negligible, and SDs are equal to approx. 0.4 mm. The statistics are almost identical for all three GNSS solutions. For STDs, the agreement from all three solutions is very similar; however it is slightly better for GPS only. The average bias with respect to ERA5 equals approx. 4 mm, with SDs of approx. 26 mm. The biases are only slightly reduced for the Galileo-only estimates from the GRE solution. This study shows that all systems provide data of comparable quality. However, the advantage of combining several GNSS systems in the operational data assimilation is the geometry improvement by adding more observations, especially for low elevation and azimuth angles.

Pharmacotherapy of Primary Impulsive Aggression in Violent Criminal Offenders

Primary impulsive aggression (PIA) can be implicated as a common factor that results in an arrest, disciplinary, and restraint measures during confinement, and criminal recidivism after release. Evidence suggests that anti-impulsive aggression agents (AIAAs) can diminish or prevent impulsive aggression even when occurring with personality pathology such as borderline or antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), common conditions in offender populations. A previous review identified agents that have been subjected to controlled drug trials of sufficient quality, and subsequently, a decisional algorithm was developed for selecting an AIAA for individuals with IA. This selection process began with the five agents that showed efficacy in two or more quality studies from the earlier review. Today, 8 years after the quality review study, the present authors undertook this follow-up literature review. The aims of the present review were to survey the literature to identify and assess: (1) drug trials of comparable quality published since the 2013 review, including trials of the previously identified AIAAs as well as trials of agents not included in the earlier review; (2) severity of aggressive outbursts; (3) the materiality of risks or side-effects that are associated with individual AIAAs as well as antipsychotic agents commonly used to control clinical aggression; (4) efficacy of these agents in special populations (e.g., females); and (5) cost and convenience of each agent. Improved pharmacotherapy of PIA by addressing risks, side effects and practicality as well as the efficacy of AIAAs, should promote the rehabilitation and reintegration of some pathologically aggressive offenders back into the community.

Patient acceptability and quality of self-administered intravaginal gel for pelvic MRI

Background: MRI of the pelvis can be limited for infiltrating lesions or those of same signal intensity as surrounding structures. Vaginal distension using aqueous gel counters this by defining the fornices, cervix and anterior rectal wall. This increases the accuracy of diagnosis and staging of various pelvic pathology, however, there is currently neither a universally accepted protocol for using gel nor focus on patient self-administration. Aims: To improve patient expectations regarding pelvic MRI with intravaginal gel, as well as the service we provide should they prefer self-administration and this produces vaginal distension of radiological quality equivalent to doctor-administration. Methods: Illustrated information explaining the benefits of gel and the technique of self-administration was sent to patients scheduled for pelvic MRI between March 2020 and April 2021 at our study centre. This included a questionnaire to assess understanding and preference for self-administration. Vaginal distension achieved on imaging was analysed using TeraRecon and compared between self and doctor-administered cases. Results: 38 of 45 patients opted for self-administration of gel. Those who identified as White British were more likely to self-administer. There was comparable quality of vaginal distension between self and doctor administered cases, with no significant difference between orthogonal measurements and retained gel volume. Conclusion: Self-administration of intravaginal gel for pelvic MRI is acceptable to patients and frees a doctor of this duty. It is a well tolerated technique which produces high quality vaginal distention on imaging. We recommend wider use of intravaginal and even rectal gel in the investigation of complex endometriosis and pelvic tumours.

Whole-genome sequencing highlights conservative genomic strategies of a stress-tolerant, long-lived scleractinian coral, Porites australiensis Vaughan, 1918

Massive corals of the genus Porites, common, keystone reef builders in the Indo-Pacific Ocean, are distinguished by their relative stress tolerance and longevity. In order to identify genetic bases of these attributes, we sequenced the complete genome of a massive coral, Porites australiensis. We developed a genome assembly and gene models of comparable quality to those of other coral genomes. Proteome analysis identified sixty Porites skeletal matrix protein genes, all of which show significant similarities to genes from other corals and even to those from a sea anemone, which has no skeleton. Nonetheless, 30% of its skeletal matrix proteins were unique to Porites, and were not present in the skeletons of other corals. Comparative genomic analyses showed that genes widely conserved among other organisms are selectively expanded in Porites. Specifically, comparisons of transcriptomic responses of P. australiensis and Acropora digitifera, a stress-sensitive coral, reveal significant differences in regard to genes that respond to increased water temperature, and some of the genes expanded exclusively in Porites may account for the different thermal tolerances of these corals. Taken together, widely shared genes may have given rise to unique biological characteristics of Porites, massive skeletons and stress tolerance.

A COLLECTIVE RESERVING MODEL WITH CLAIM OPENNESS

The present paper introduces a simple aggregated reserving model based on claim count and payment dynamics, which allows for claim closings and re-openings. The modelling starts off from individual Poisson process claim dynamics in discrete time, keeping track of accident year, reporting year and payment delay. This modelling approach is closely related to the one underpinning the so-called double chain-ladder model, and it allows for producing separate reported but not settled and incurred but not reported reserves. Even though the introduction of claim closings and re-openings will produce new types of dependencies, it is possible to use flexible parametrisations in terms of, for example, generalised linear models (GLM) whose parameters can be estimated based on aggregated data using quasi-likelihood theory. Moreover, it is possible to obtain interpretable and explicit moment calculations, as well as having consistency of normalised reserves when the number of contracts tend to infinity. Further, by having access to simple analytic expressions for moments, it is computationally cheap to bootstrap the mean squared error of prediction for reserves. The performance of the model is illustrated using a flexible GLM parametrisation evaluated on non-trivial simulated claims data. This numerical illustration indicates a clear improvement compared with models not taking claim closings and re-openings into account. The results are also seen to be of comparable quality with machine learning models for aggregated data not taking claim openness into account.

Physico-Chemical, Microbiological and Sensory Characteristics of Papaya Pulp-Milk Blends Fermented with a Probiotic Starter Culture

Yoghurt is a popular fermented milk product across the globe. As consumers become more health conscious, there has been rising interest in probiotic yoghurts, fermented with bacteria that can promote human health, as well as yoghurts containing fruit pieces, juice or pulp, which increase the levels of phytochemicals, dietary fibre and some vitamins in the product. Generally, the fruit products are added only up to about 20%. Here we investigated the physicochemical, sensory and microbial properties of analogous fermented products containing milk, but consisting mainly of papaya fruit pulp. Formulations were made at different ratios ranging from 50-100% papaya pulp. Yoghurt (with 0% papaya) was made to serve as the control. Conditions for pasteurization prior to fermentation were optimized for the control of yeasts and molds. The products were fermented with a probiotic culture consisting of Streptococcus thermophilus + Lactobacillus acidophilus + Bifidobacterium spp. Sensory analysis on a 9-point hedonic scale revealed an increase in acceptability of the various attributes with increase in pulp. Formulations containing 80% to 100% papaya fruit were found to be most liked and of comparable quality to the control, having scores of ≥ 7 (ranging from moderately liked to liked very much)) in colour, taste, texture and overall acceptability. Compared to the control, these formulations were found to contain more ascorbic acid, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, dietary fiber and carbohydrates. The control was however higher in thiamine, protein and fat levels. The products were stable under refrigerated storage (4 ⁰C) for 3 weeks. In conclusion, we found that papaya pulp fermented with a probiotic starter culture, and containing up to 20% milk had good sensory acceptability. The health benefits of such products are worthy of further investigations.

Evaluation of Apium graveolens from different geographical origins based on TLC-fingerprint and chemometrics

Apium graveolens (celery) has various roles both in the food and medicine sectors. It grows very well in the tropical and subtropical areas of Africa and Asia, including Indonesia. This Apiaceae member contains a number of phytoconstituents, and geographical origin is known to significantly determine the type and concentration of phytochemicals in plant material. This study was carried out to validate and develop thin layer chromatography (TLC)-based fingerprinting combined with chemometrics, i.e., Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Cluster Analysis (CA), to evaluate the quality of celery harvested from thirteen different geographical origins in Indonesia. The mobile phase was first optimized with a simplex axial design, resulting in 2-propanol, toluene, and dichloromethane (1:6:1) as the optimum mobile phase for a stable and precise TLC system in the celery sample analysis. When analyzed with chemometrics, the TLC-fingerprints could discriminate celeries from various origins. The PCA score plot of the first two principal components (PCs) and CA clearly distinguished the samples’ properties and classified them into four clusters. Samples grouped into one cluster were concluded to have comparable quality, while those in different clusters had different qualities.

Evaluating gladiolus varieties for off-season planting using agro-meteorological indices

Commercial floriculture is an emerging profitable agro industry in the world with great demand of cut flowers but with a constraint to regulate the supply for longer duration in the markets. The off-season plucked flowers get better price, as glut during peak season affects the profits. This could be achieved by cultivating varieties over a wide range of planting times which demands evaluation of varietal performance under different sowing windows. The present study was conducted with five gladiolus varieties viz. Punjab glance, Punjab lemon delight, Novalux, Rose supreme and Alexander the great planted at six sowing dates starting from 5thJuly to 20th September at 15 days interval. All the varieties gave best performance in terms of days to flowering, plant height, spike length, number of florets per spike, vase life and number of corms per corm when planted on 20th September (nearest to normal planting season).The growth of all varieties was affected under early plantings as they produced taller plants with shorter spikes, reduced number of florets per spike and vase life; took more number of days to flower, accumulated more growing degree days (GDD), helio thermal units (HTU) and photothermal units (PTU). All the varieties under early plantings produced spikes of comparable quality that depicts their tolerance to unfavourable temperature and photoperiod. This characteristic could be used in breeding programmes for development of varieties that could efficiently channelize their accumulated heat units for spike production and could be grown in diverse agro climatic zones. The performance of early planted Punjab glance and Punjab lemon delight was at par to their respective normal plantings. Thus, early planting of these varieties will lead to spike production in September and at this time farmers can fetch good price.

Markups and Fixed Costs in Generic and Off-Patent Pharmaceutical Markets

There is wide dispersion in pharmaceutical prices across countries with comparable quality standards. Under monopoly, off-patent and generic drug prices are at least four times higher in the United States than in comparable Englishspeaking high income countries. With five or more competitors, off-patent drug prices are similar or lower. Our analysis shows that differential US markups are largely driven by the market power of drug suppliers and not due to wholesale intermediaries or pharmacies. Furthermore, we show that the traditional mechanism of reducing market power – free entry – is limited because implied entry costs are substantially higher in the US.

Untitled ItemProperties of Concrete Containing Recycled Concrete Aggregate of Preserved Quality

<p>This study focuses on evaluating recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) of high quality produced through a protocol that preserves the original properties of the concrete to be recycled. Concrete with RCA of preserved quality was compared to concrete with commercially available RCA. A total of 29 mixes were tested with RCA replacement ranging from 30% to 100% of the coarse aggregate. Results showed that concrete with RCA of preserved quality performed significantly better in compressive strength, drying shrinkage, and salt scaling resistance. Furthermore, the use of 30% RCA with preserved quality produced concrete of comparable quality to that of concrete with natural aggregate.</p>