609 research outputs found
Image 4. A in Status and conservation of crocodiles in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, eastern Nepal
No full textImage 4. A - Movement of the livestock along the shoreline; B - People came to collect the firewood; C - Human activities along the bank of the edge of the river; D - Low level of water in the Tetriganchital in summerPublished as part of Goit, Rajesh Kumar & Basnet, Khadga, 2011, Status and conservation of crocodiles in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, eastern Nepal, pp. 2001-2010 in Journal of Threatened Taxa 3 (8) on page 2007, DOI: 10.11609/JoTT.o2735.2001-10, http://zenodo.org/record/498694
Tree Architecture and Structural Complexity in Mountain Forests of the Annapurna Region, Himalaya
No full textABSTRACT Mountain ranges comprise heterogeneous environments and high plant diversity, but little is known about the architecture and structural complexity of trees in mountain forests. We studied the relationship between tree architecture, environmental conditions, and tree structural complexity in forests of the Annapurna region in the Himalaya. We further asked whether and how tree structural complexity translates into forest stand structural complexity. The study covers 546 trees on 14 undisturbed study plots across wide ranges of elevation (1300 to 3400 m asl.) and annual precipitation (1180 to 3600 mm yr. −1 ). They were assessed by ground‐based mobile laser scanning. We found that tree structural complexity, expressed as box‐dimension ( D b ), was lowest for the needle‐leaved Pinus wallichiana and highest for the broad‐leaved Daphniphyllum himalense . A high share of the variation in D b was explained by tree architecture. In multivariate models, tree height, crown radius, and crown length explained more than 60% of the observed variation in D b . Stem density of the plot accounted for 19% of the variation in D b , and there was no influence of tree diversity. Precipitation explained l3% of the observed variation in tree D b , but elevation and slope did not have significant influences. As expected, tree height decreased with increasing elevation, but small trees often had relatively high D b values. The standard deviation of tree‐level D b within a plot explained 47% of the variation in stand‐level structural complexity among plots, surpassing the maximum tree‐level D b . This suggests that both the sole removal of small or large trees would reduce the stand‐level complexity by 36%. We conclude that in the Himalayan forests, species identity and tree architecture play a significant role in determining tree structural complexity, while environmental factors have a smaller role. Furthermore, structural variation among the trees within a plot plays a crucial role for the structural complexity at the stand level.Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst https://doi.org/10.13039/501100001655Open-Access-Publikationsfonds 202
Forests with high structural complexity contribute more to land surface cooling: empirical support for management for complexity
No full textAbstract Forests play a vital role in mitigating climate change through their physiological functions and metabolic processes, including their ability to convert solar energy into biomolecules. However, further research is necessary to elucidate how structural characteristics of a forest and topographic settings influence energy conversion and surface temperature of a forest. In this study, we investigated a beech forest in central Germany using airborne laser scanning (ALS) point cloud data and land surface temperature (LST) data derived from Landsat 9 satellite imagery. We constructed 30 m × 30 m plots across the study area (approximately 17 km 2 ) to align the spatial resolution of the satellite imagery with the ALS data. We analyzed topographic variables (surface elevation, aspect and slope), forest attributes (canopy cover, canopy height, and woody area index), as well as forest structural complexity, quantified by the box-dimension ( D b ). Our analysis revealed that LST is significantly influenced by both forest attributes and topographic variables. A multiple linear regression model demonstrated an inverse relationship ( R 2 = 0.38, AIC = 8105) between LST and a combination of D b , elevation, slope, and aspect. However, the model residuals exhibited significant spatial dependency, as indicated by Moran’s I test. To address this, we applied a spatial autoregressive model, which effectively accounted for spatial autocorrelation and improved the model fit (AIC = 746). Our findings indicate that elevation exerts the most substantial influence on LST, followed by forest structural complexity, slope, and aspect. We conclude that forest management practices that enhance structural complexity can effectively reduce land surface temperatures in forested landscapes
The role of erythromycin C-12 hydroxylase, EryK, as a substitute for PikC hydroxylase in pikromycin biosynthesis
No full textThe substrate flexibility of the erythromycin C-12 hydroxylase from Saccharopolyspora erythraea, EryK, was investigated to test its potential for the generation of novel polyketide structures. We have shown that EryK can accept the substrates of PikC from Streptomyces venezuelae which is responsible for the hydroxylation of YC-17 and narbomycin. In a S. venezuelae pikC deletion mutant, EryK could catalyze the hydroxylation of YC-17 and narbomycin to generate methymycin/neomethymycin and pikromycin, respectively. Molecular modeling of the enzyme-substrate complex suggested the possible interaction of EryK with alternative substrates. The results indicate that EryK is flexible toward some alternative polyketides and can be useful for structural diversification of macrolides by post-polyketide synthase hydroxylation.open
Magnetic Topological Semimetal Phase with Electronic Correlation Enhancement in SmSbTe
No full textThe ZrSiS family of compounds hosts various exotic quantum phenomena due to the presence of both topological nonsymmorphic Dirac fermions and nodal-line fermions. In this material family, the LnSbTe (Ln = lanthanide) compounds are particularly interesting owing to the intrinsic magnetism from magnetic Ln which leads to new properties and quantum states. In this work, the authors focus on the previously unexplored compound SmSbTe. The studies reveal a rare combination of a few functional properties in this material, including antiferromagnetism with possible magnetic frustration, electron correlation enhancement, and Dirac nodal-line fermions. These properties enable SmSbTe as a unique platform to explore exotic quantum phenomena and advanced functionalities arising from the interplay between magnetism, topology, and electronic correlations
Measurement of the t t ¯ H and tH production rates in the H → b b ¯ decay channel using proton-proton collision data at s = 13 TeV
No full textAbstract An analysis of the production of a Higgs boson (H) in association with a top quark-antiquark pair ( t t ¯ H ) or a single top quark (tH) is presented. The Higgs boson decay into a bottom quark-antiquark pair (H → b b ¯ ) is targeted, and three different final states of the top quark decays are considered, defined by the number of leptons (electrons or muons) in the event. The analysis utilises proton-proton collision data collected at the CERN LHC with the CMS experiment at s = 13 TeV in 2016–2018, which correspond to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb −1. The observed t t ¯ H production rate relative to the standard model expectation is 0.33 ± 0.26 = 0.33 ± 0.17(stat) ± 0.21(syst). Additionally, the t t ¯ H production rate is determined in intervals of Higgs boson transverse momentum. An upper limit at 95% confidence level is set on the tH production rate of 14.6 times the standard model prediction, with an expectation of 19.3 − 6.0 + 9.2 . Finally, constraints are derived on the strength and structure of the coupling between the Higgs boson and the top quark from simultaneous extraction of the t t ¯ H and tH production rates, and the results are combined with those obtained in other Higgs boson decay channels
Search for CP violation in decays in proton–proton collisions at
No full text: A search is reported for charge-parity CP violation in D0→KS0KS0 decays, using data collected in proton-proton collisions at s=13TeV recorded by the CMS experiment in 2018. The analysis uses a dedicated data set that corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 41.6 fb-1 , which consists of about 10 billion events containing a pair of b hadrons, nearly all of which decay to charm hadrons. The flavor of the neutral D meson is determined by the pion charge in the reconstructed decays D∗+→D0π+ and D∗-→D ̄0π- . The CP asymmetry in D0→KS0KS0 is measured to be ACP(KS0KS0)=(6.2±3.0±0.2±0.8)% , where the three uncertainties represent the statistical uncertainty, the systematic uncertainty, and the uncertainty in the measurement of the CP asymmetry in the D0→KS0π+π- decay. This is the first CP asymmetry measurement by CMS in the charm sector as well as the first to utilize a fully hadronic final state
Effect of Acute Hepatitis E Infection in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis
No full textIntroduction: Hepatitis E virus is a major cause of enterically transmitted hepatitis. Mortality is very
high if it is associated with pregnancy, especially during third trimester. This study was carried out to
fi nd out the effects of acute HEV hepatitis on Chronic Liver Disease patients of different etiologies.
Methods: The consecutive patients of liver cirrhosis with defi nite evidence of recent HEV infection
were enrolled in this study. Acute hepatitis was diagnosed by presence of prodromal symptoms
and anti-HEV IgM antibody in their serum. The outcomes after superinfection with HEV hepatitis
were determined by changes in Child Pugh score, recovery of liver function test, hospital stay and
mortality.
Results: After exclusion 25 were studied. The etiology of cirrhosis in patients was: alcohol 13,
autoimmune hepatitis 3, hepatitis B 2, Budd Chiari syndrome 2, alcohol plus hepatitis B 1, hepatitis C
1, cardiac cirrhosis 1, Wilson’s disease 1 and cryptogenic 1. All patients with no recent decompensation
showed signs of decompensation during admission. Seven (28%) patients died. The cause of death
was either upper gastrointestinal bleeding or hepatorenal syndrome. Remaining patients had
prolonged hospital stay with deterioration of Child-Pugh’s score.
Conclusions: Superinfection of HEV in cirrhotic patient causes rapid decompensation. The morbidity
and mortality is higher compared to those non-infected patients. Development of hepatorenal
syndrome and upper GI bleeding was commonest cause of death.
Key Words: acute HEV infection, Chronic liver disease, third trimester pregnanc
The lost childhood of street children in Nepal
No full textThesis (M.A.)--Wichita State University, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Program of Liberal Studies.In the present situation of armed and political conflict in Nepal, protection of children is at stake. There is a pressing need in such an environment to address all aspects of children‟s rights in order to be able to reach out to children in crisis. One group of children in crisis are those living on the street. I have often seen street children picking rags, sniffing glue, begging & selling newspapers and the like. These children, living on the streets day and night, have been directly affected by poverty and social exclusion. Even though there are a few child welfare organizations in Nepal trying to address the problems of street children, a large group of these children remain a part of the urban landscape. It seems like the common public response to street children is either sympathy or hostility. They are perceived as victims or criminals. It was within this context that my interest in exploring the lives of street children in Nepal emerged. My goal was to uncover some of the perceptions about the lives of street children from the organizations working with them. Through semi-structured interviews with child welfare workers and observations of some of these children themselves, this study explored a) how agencies indentify street children b) what are the main reasons children become street children c) the risks street children face and d) how individuals and organizations can help guide a positive transition to the life of street children. The following questions will work as a tool to disclose other important answers. For instance, the answers to reasons children come to the street is helpful in developing preventive measures. Similarly, answers to the risk factors that street children face will be effective in designing protective measures for those children who are already on the street
Observation of the Λ b 0 → J / ψ Ξ - K + decay
No full textAbstract Using proton–proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb - 1 collected by the CMS experiment at s = 13 Te V , the Λ b 0 → J / ψ Ξ - K + decay is observed for the first time, with a statistical significance exceeding 5 standard deviations. The relative branching fraction, with respect to the Λ b 0 → ψ ( 2 S ) Λ decay, is measured to be B ( Λ b 0 → J / ψ Ξ - K + ) / B ( Λ b 0 → ψ ( 2 S ) Λ ) = [ 3.38 ± 1.02 ± 0.61 ± 0.03 ] % , where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is related to the uncertainties in B ( ψ ( 2 S ) → J / ψ π + π - ) and B ( Ξ - → Λ π - )
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