We present an approach for evaluating coherence in multivariate systems that considers all the variables simultaneously. We operationalize the multivariate system as a network and define coherence as the efficiency with which a signal is transmitted throughout the network. We illustrate this approach with time series data from 15 psychophysiological signals representing individuals’ moment-by-moment emotional reactions to emotional films. First, we summarize the time series through nonparametric Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves. Second, we use Spearman rank correlations to calculate relationships between each pair of variables. Third, based on the obtained associations, we construct a network using the variables as nodes. Finally, we examine signal transmission through all the nodes in the network. Our results indicate that the network consisting of the 15 psychophysiological signals has a small-world structure, with three clusters of variables and strong within-cluster connections. This structure supports an effective signal transmission across the entire network. When compared across experimental conditions, our results indicate that coherence is relatively stronger for intense emotional stimuli than for neutral stimuli. These findings are discussed in relation to multivariate methods and emotion theories.

Young stellar objects (YSOs) are protostars that exhibit bipolar outflows fed by accretion disks. Theories of the transition between disk and outflow often involve a complex magnetic field structure thought to be created by the disk coiling field lines at the jet base; however, due to limited resolution, these theories cannot be confirmed with observation and thus may benefit from laboratory astrophysics studies. We create a dynamically similar laboratory system by driving a $\sim$1 MA current pulse with a 200 ns rise through a $\approx$2 mm-tall Al cylindrical wire array mounted to a three-dimensional (3-D)-printed, stainless steel scaffolding. This system creates a plasma that converges on the centre axis and ejects cm-scale bipolar outflows. Depending on the chosen 3-D-printed load path, the system may be designed to push the ablated plasma flow radially inwards or off-axis to make rotation. In this paper, we present results from the simplest iteration of the load which generates radially converging streams that launch non-rotating jets. The temperature, velocity and density of the radial inflows and axial outflows are characterized using interferometry, gated optical and ultraviolet imaging, and Thomson scattering diagnostics. We show that experimental measurements of the Reynolds number and sonic Mach number in three different stages of the experiment scale favourably to the observed properties of YSO jets with $Re\sim 10^5\unicode{x2013}10^9$ and $M\sim 1\unicode{x2013}10$, while our magnetic Reynolds number of $Re_M\sim 1\unicode{x2013}15$ indicates that the magnetic field diffuses out of our plasma over multiple hydrodynamical time scales. We compare our results with 3-D numerical simulations in the PERSEUS extended magnetohydrodynamics code.

Although the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC, also known as Taiwan) and their ruling parties have altered over time, there are quite a few similarities between their models of nation-building, more than is commonly acknowledged. The guofu (father) of the modern Chinese state, Sun Yat-sen, one of the few political leaders who is still honored on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, claimed all the peoples and territories of the former Qing empire comprised a single national community, the so-called Zhonghua minzu. Yet a Han super-majority has long sat at the center of this national imaginary. In this article, we ask what has happened to Sun’s imagined community across the last century, and how it has evolved in the two competing Chinese states the PRC and the ROC. We seek to demonstrate the enduring challenge of Han-centrism for multiethnic nation-building in both countries, while illustrating how shifts in domestic and international politics are altering this national imaginary and the place of ethnocultural diversity within it.

Shark vertebrae and their centra (vertebral bodies) are high-performance structures able to survive millions of cycles of high amplitude strain despite lacking a repair mechanism for accumulating damage. Shark centra consist of mineralized cartilage, a biocomposite of bioapatite (bAp), and collagen, and the nanocrystalline bAp's contribution to functionality remains largely uninvestigated. Using the multiple detector energy-dispersive diffraction (EDD) system at 6-BM-B, the Advanced Photon Source, and 3D tomographic sampling, the 3D functionality of entire centra were probed. Immersion in ethanol vs phosphate-buffered saline produces only small changes in bAp d-spacing within a great hammerhead centrum. EDD mapping under in situ loading was performed an entire blue shark centrum, and 3D maps of bAp strain showed the two structural zones of the centrum, the corpus calcareum and intermedialia, contained opposite-signed strains approaching 0.5%, and application of ~8% nominal strain did not alter these strain magnitudes and their spatial distribution.

While grain farming has seen a major shift toward organic production in recent years, the USA continues to lag behind with domestic demand continuing to outpace domestic supply, making the USA an all-around net importer. The Midwestern USA is poised to help remedy this imbalance; however, farmers continue to slowly transition to organic production systems. Existing literature has identified three prevalent narratives that farmers use to frame their organic transition: environmentalism, farm-family legacy and economic factors, in addition to a four and untested religiosity narrative. This study sought to better understand how these different narratives frame grain farmers’ thought processes for transitioning from conventional production systems to certified organic production systems. We co-created narratives around organic production with farmers, which resulted in four passages aligned with the literature: farm-family legacy, economic values, environmental values and Christianity and stewarding Eden. Then, we mailed a paper survey to conventional, in transition and certified organic Indiana grain farmers in order to test how these different narratives motivated organic production. We found that the most prevalent narrative around organic production is the farm-family legacy, which specifically resonated with midsize farmers. We also found that the religious stewardship narrative resonated with a substantial number of organic and mixed practice farmers, which is likely due to Amish farmers within the sample. These results shed light on the role that narratives and associated values play in organic practice use and can inform the organic efforts of agricultural professionals.

The Maser Monitoring Organisation is a collection of researchers exploring the use of time-variable maser emission in the investigation of astrophysical phenomena. The forward directed aspects of research primarily involve using maser emission as a tool to investigate star formation. Simultaneously, these activities have deepened knowledge of maser emission itself in addition to uncovering previously unknown maser transitions. Thus a feedback loop is created where both the knowledge of astrophysical phenomena and the utilised tools of investigation themselves are iteratively sharpened. The project goals are open-ended and constantly evolving, however, the reliance on radio observatory maser monitoring campaigns persists as the fundamental enabler of research activities within the group.

Recently, remarkable progress has been made in understanding the formation of high mass stars. Observations provided direct evidence that massive young stellar objects (MYSOs), analogously to low-mass ones, form via disk-mediated accretion accompanied by episodic accretion bursts, possibly caused by disk fragmentation. In the case of MYSOs, the mechanism theoretically provides a means to overcome radiation pressure, but in practice it is poorly studied - only three accretion bursts in MYSOs have been caught in action to date. A significant contribution to the development of the theory has been made with the study of masers, which have proven to be a powerful tool for locating “bursting” MYSOs. This overview focuses on the exceptional role that masers play in the search and study of accretion bursts in massive protostars.

Two new eurypterids, a pterygotid Pterygotus wanggaii n. sp. and an adelophthalmoid Parahughmilleria fuea n. sp., are described from the Early Devonian (Lochkovian) Xiaxishancun Formation of Yunnan province, southwest China. This discovery represents the first record of Parahughmilleria from Gondwana and the first Pterygotus from China. Pterygotus wanggaii n. sp. is characterized by the first primary denticles (d1,d1′) being located on the middle part of the cheliceral ramus and third primary denticles (d3,d3′) elongate, even longer than the first primary denticles. Parahughmilleria fuea n. sp. is differentiated by being a large Parahughmilleria with strongly developed lateral epimera from tergites T4 to T12. These discoveries not only extend the geographical extent of the genera Pterygotus and Parahughmilleria from Euramerica to SW China, but also give insight into the similarity of ecosystem structures across the Early Devonian world. In addition, based on previous studies, the new discoveries further support the hypothesis that eurypterids underwent a crisis during the Silurian–Devonian boundary interval.

Swede midge, Contarinia nasturtii (Kieffer) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), causes severe economic losses in Brassica Linnaeus (Brassicaceae) crops in its invasive range in North America. Larvae feed within the meristem of their host plants, causing deformed heads, stems, and leaves. Pheromone-mediated mating disruption is particularly promising for swede midge management in high-value vegetable crops because its use is allowed in organic production. However, a major challenge to developing economically viable mating disruption is that the stereospecific three-component swede midge pheromone is costly to synthesise. In broccoli (Brassica oleracea Linnaeus var. italica) field plots, we tested whether stereospecific, lower-cost racemic, and single-component pheromone blends resulted in trap shutdown and reduced crop damage compared to nontreated controls. We found a significant reduction in males caught in three-component stereospecific and racemic pheromone–treated plots but not in the single-component treatments. Although marketable broccoli yields were not higher overall in the pheromone-treated plots compared with those in the controls, yields were significantly higher in the three-component stereospecific treatment in year 2. Therefore, the three-component stereospecific blend shows promise as a pheromone blend for swede midge mating disruption. However, due to high cost and levels of crop damage across all treatments, additional research is necessary to optimise swede midge mating disruption.

Two new eurypterids, a pterygotid Erettopterus qujingensis n. sp., and a slimoniid, Slimonia sp., are described from the upper Silurian (Pridolian) Yulongsi Formation of Yunnan Province, China. Erettopterus qujingensis n. sp. is characterized by several inversely curved ramus denticles and a metastoma with a deep notch in the center. The discovery not only extends the geographic extent of the genus Erettopterus and Slimonia from Euramerica to southwest China, but also gives insight into the similarity of ecosystem structures across the Silurian world.

UUID: http://zoobank.org/939e82cd-58fc-415b-9209-514aecef2267

This study evaluated the association between inflammatory diets as measured by the Dietary Inflammatory index (DII), inflammation biomarkers and the development of preeclampsia among the Chinese population. We followed the reporting guidelines of the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology statement for observational studies. A total of 466 preeclampsia cases aged over 18 years were recruited between March 2016 and June 2019, and 466 healthy controls were 1:1 ratio matched by age (±3 years), week of gestation (±1 week) and gestational diabetes mellitus. The energy-adjusted DII (E-DII) was computed based on dietary intake assessed using a seventy-nine item semiquantitative FFQ. Inflammatory biomarkers were analysed by ELISA kits. The mean E-DII scores were −0·65 ± 1·58 for cases and −1·19 ± 1·47 for controls (P value < 0·001). E-DII scores positively correlated with interferon-γ (r s = 0·194, P value = 0·001) and IL-4 (r s = 0·135, P value = 0·021). After multivariable adjustment, E-DII scores were positively related to preeclampsia risk (P trend < 0·001). The highest tertile of E-DII was 2·18 times the lowest tertiles (95 % CI = 1·52, 3·13). The odds of preeclampsia increased by 30 % (95 % CI = 18 %, 43 %, P value < 0·001) for each E-DII score increase. The preeclampsia risk was positively associated with IL-2 (OR = 1·07, 95 % CI = 1·03, 1·11), IL-4 (OR = 1·26, 95 % CI = 1·03, 1·54) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) (OR = 1·17, 95 % CI = 1·06, 1·29). Therefore, proinflammatory diets, corresponding to higher IL-2, IL-4 and TGF-β levels, were associated with increased preeclampsia risk.