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At least 1,459 records · Page 81

The Dark Energy Survey supernova programme: modelling selection efficiency and observed core-collapse supernova contamination

ABSTRACT The analysis of current and future cosmological surveys of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) at high redshift depends on the accurate photometric classification of the SN events detected. Generating realistic simulations of photometric SN surveys constitutes an essential step for training and testing photometric classification algorithms, and for correcting biases introduced by selection effects and contamination arising from core-collapse SNe in the photometric SN Ia samples. We use published SN time-series spectrophotometric templates, rates, luminosity functions, and empirical relationships between SNe and their host galaxies to construct a framework for simulating photometric SN surveys. We present this framework in the context of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) 5-yr photometric SN sample, comparing our simulations of DES with the observed DES transient populations. We demonstrate excellent agreement in many distributions, including Hubble residuals, between our simulations and data. We estimate the core collapse fraction expected in the DES SN sample after selection requirements are applied and before photometric classification. After testing different modelling choices and astrophysical assumptions underlying our simulation, we find that the predicted contamination varies from 7.2 to 11.7 per cent, with an average of 8.8 per cent and an r.m.s. of 1.1 per cent. Our simulations are the first to reproduce the observed photometric SN and host galaxy properties in high-redshift surveys without fine-tuning the input parameters. The simulation methods presented here will be a critical component of the cosmology analysis of the DES photometric SN Ia sample: correcting for biases arising from contamination, and evaluating the associated systematic uncertainty.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Essential amino acids in the Plant-Conserved and Class-Specific Regions of cellulose synthases

The Plant-Conserved Region (P-CR) and the Class-Specific Region (CSR) are two plant-unique sequences in the catalytic core of cellulose synthases (CESAs) for which specific functions have not been established. Here, we used site-directed mutagenesis to replace amino acids and motifs within these sequences predicted to be essential for assembly and function of CESAs. We developed an in vivo method to determine the ability of mutated CesA1 transgenes to complement an Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) temperature-sensitive root-swelling1 (rsw1) mutant. Replacement of a Cys residue in the CSR, which blocks dimerization in vitro, rendered the AtCesA1 transgene unable to complement the rsw1 mutation. Examination of the CSR sequences from 33 diverse angiosperm species showed domains of high-sequence conservation in a class-specific manner but with variation in the degrees of disorder, indicating a nonredundant role of the CSR structures in different CESA isoform classes. The Cys residue essential for dimerization was not always located in domains of intrinsic disorder. Expression of AtCesA1 transgene constructs, in which Pro417 and Arg453 were substituted for Ala or Lys in the coiled-coil of the P-CR, were also unable to complement the rsw1 mutation. Despite an expected role for Arg457 in trimerization of CESA proteins, AtCesA1 transgenes with Arg457Ala mutations were able to fully restore the wild-type phenotype in rsw1. Our data support that Cys662 within the CSR and Pro417 and Arg453 within the P-CR of Arabidopsis CESA1 are essential residues for functional synthase complex formation, but our data do not support a specific role for Arg457 in trimerization in native CESA complexes.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Complexity analysis of a CT injection experiment on BRB

In this work, we use Jensen–Shannon complexity and permutation entropy to analyze the magnetic field fluctuations of an astrophysically scaled plasma experiment. The experiment was intended to emulate an interplanetary coronal mass ejection event in the lab, recreating the major sections seen in satellite data. We also use a technique called “delay,” in which we use select elements, skipping one or more data points at a time, in our time series data to obtain Jensen–Shannon complexity as a function of frequency and investigate the frequency of maximized complexity. We then compare the delay frequencies to other frequencies in the plasma. We found that the frequencies for maximum complexity do not correspond to the frequencies investigated, implying that other physical mechanisms lead to an increase in complexity at these frequencies.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Assessing mechanisms for microbial taxa and community dynamics using process models

Disentangling the assembly mechanisms controlling community composition, structure, distribution, functions, and dynamics is a central issue in ecology. Although various approaches have been proposed to examine community assembly mechanisms, quantitative characterization is challenging, particularly in microbial ecology. Here, we present a novel approach for quantitatively delineating community assembly mechanisms by combining the consumer–resource model with a neutral model in stochastic differential equations. Using time-series data from anaerobic bioreactors that target microbial 16S rRNA genes, we tested the applicability of three ecological models: the consumer–resource model, the neutral model, and the combined model. Our results revealed that model performances varied substantially as a function of population abundance and/or process conditions. The combined model performed best for abundant taxa in the treatment bioreactors where process conditions were manipulated. In contrast, the neutral model showed the best performance for rare taxa. Our analysis further indicated that immigration rates decreased with taxa abundance and competitions between taxa were strongly correlated with phylogeny, but within a certain phylogenetic distance only. The determinism underlying taxa and community dynamics were quantitatively assessed, showing greater determinism in the treatment bioreactors that aligned with the subsequent abnormal system functioning. Given its mechanistic basis, the framework developed here is expected to be potentially applicable beyond microbial ecology.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Green buffers near industrial plants, examples in Jefferson County TX

Green buffers between industrial plants and residential areas have multiple purposes in mitigating air pollution and protecting the environment. This study focuses on providing information on examples of green space development by industries near residential areas in Jefferson County, Texas. One represents a full buffer where residences were totally removed, another is a partial buffer where some residences were removed in a neighborhood and the third represents vegetation of a formerly industrial facility. Additional estimates on benefits of buffer spaces with respect to a pollutant plume are also considered. The study used geospatial and property data from 1966 to 2020. The transition from a residential area to a full or partial buffers highlights possible mitigation of air pollution impacts while serving additional functions, such as boosting stormwater infiltration and improving the aesthetic attractiveness of the area. The transformation from oil tanks to forested space may display the potential for environmental remediation, but not all spaces are suitable for fully forested buffers, as safety and other limitations should be considered. With the analysis of the classic Plume Equation insights can be provided regarding the possible impact of green buffers on ground-level pollutant concentrations. The calculations for atmospheric stability classes A-F and for various stack heights provide an understanding of how different conditions may affect the pollutant concentrations. The presence of a green buffer can play a crucial role in controlling ground-level pollution concentrations and reduce a community’s perception of risk.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Unveiling the transferability of PLSR models for leaf trait estimation: lessons from a comprehensive analysis with a novel global dataset

Leaf traits are essential for understanding many physiological and ecological processes. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) models with leaf spectroscopy are widely applied for trait estimation, but their transferability across space, time, and plant functional types (PFTs) remains unclear. We compiled a novel dataset of paired leaf traits and spectra, with 47 393 records for >700 species and eight PFTs at 101 globally distributed locations across multiple seasons. Using this dataset, we conducted an unprecedented comprehensive analysis to assess the transferability of PLSR models in estimating leaf traits. While PLSR models demonstrate commendable performance in predicting chlorophyll content, carotenoid, leaf water, and leaf mass per area prediction within their training data space, their efficacy diminishes when extrapolating to new contexts. Specifically, extrapolating to locations, seasons, and PFTs beyond the training data leads to reduced R 2 (0.12–0.49, 0.15–0.42, and 0.25–0.56) and increased NRMSE (3.58–18.24%, 6.27–11.55%, and 7.0–33.12%) compared with nonspatial random cross-validation. The results underscore the importance of incorporating greater spectral diversity in model training to boost its transferability. These findings highlight potential errors in estimating leaf traits across large spatial domains, diverse PFTs, and time due to biased validation schemes, and provide guidance for future field sampling strategies and remote sensing applications.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Marine energy converters: Potential acoustic effects on fishes and aquatic invertebrates

The potential effects of underwater anthropogenic sound and substrate vibration from offshore renewable energy development on the behavior, fitness, and health of aquatic animals is a continuing concern with increased deployments and installation of these devices. Initial focus of related studies concerned offshore wind. However, over the past decade, marine energy devices, such as a tidal turbines and wave energy converters, have begun to emerge as additional, scalable renewable energy sources. Because marine energy converters (MECs) are not as well-known as other anthropogenic sources of potential disturbance, their general function and what is known about the sounds and substrate vibrations that they produce are introduced. Furthermore, while most previous studies focused on MECs and marine mammals, this paper considers the potential of MECs to cause acoustic disturbances affecting nearshore and tidal fishes and invertebrates. In particular, the focus is on particle motion and substrate vibration from MECs because these effects are the most likely to be detected by these animals. Finally, an analysis of major data gaps in understanding the acoustics of MECs and their potential impacts on fishes and aquatic invertebrates and recommendations for research needed over the next several years to improve understanding of these potential impacts are provided.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗

URBANopt™ District Energy Systems HVAC Measures (DES_HVAC) [SWR-21-30]

DES_HVAC is a repository of a Parametric Analysis Tool (PAT) project and for scripts related to modeling of different HVAC systems for buildings in a district served by a district thermal energy system. The Measures directory contains the new measures developed to extract data from the simulations. Update these measures and not the measures in the Test Suite measures directory. PAT should be used to update the measures in the Test Suite project. The Test directory contains a PAT project for testing the functionality of the measures. The PAT project is named HVAC_Test and can be opened in PAT > 3.x.

Allen, Amy↗

Endogenous Retroviral Elements Generate Pathologic Neutrophils in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Rationale: The role of neutrophils and their extracellular vesicles (EVs) in the pathogenesis of pulmonary arterial hypertension is unclear. Objectives: To relate functional abnormalities in pulmonary arterial hypertension neutrophils and their EVs to mechanisms uncovered by proteomic and transcriptomic profiling. Methods: Production of elastase, release of extracellular traps, adhesion, and migration were assessed in neutrophils from patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension and control subjects. Proteomic analyses were applied to explain functional perturbations, and transcriptomic data were used to find underlying mechanisms. CD66b-specific neutrophil EVs were isolated from plasma of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, and we determined whether they produce pulmonary hypertension in mice. Measurements and Main Results: Neutrophils from patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension produce and release increased neutrophil elastase, associated with enhanced extracellular traps. They exhibit reduced migration and increased adhesion attributed to elevated β1-integrin and vinculin identified by proteomic analysis and previously linked to an antiviral response. This was substantiated by a transcriptomic IFN signature that we related to an increase in human endogenous retrovirus K envelope protein. Transfection of human endogenous retrovirus K envelope in a neutrophil cell line (HL-60) increases neutrophil elastase and IFN genes, whereas vinculin is increased by human endogenous retrovirus K deoxyuridine triphosphate diphosphatase that is elevated in patient plasma. Neutrophil EVs from patient plasma contain increased neutrophil elastase and human endogenous retrovirus K envelope and induce pulmonary hypertension in mice, mitigated by elafin, an elastase inhibitor. Conclusions: Elevated human endogenous retroviral elements and elastase link a neutrophil innate immune response to pulmonary arterial hypertension.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Geospatial and Information Substitution and Anonymization Tool (GISA)

The Geospatial and Information Substitution and Anonymization Tool (GISA) incorporates techniques for obfuscating identifiable information from point data or documents, while simultaneously maintaining chosen variables to enable future use and meaningful analysis. This approach promotes collaboration and data sharing while also reducing the risk of exposure to sensitive information. GISA can be used in a number of different ways, including the anonymization of point spatial data, batch replacement/removal of user-specified terms from file names and from within file content, and aid with the selection and redaction of images and terms based on recommendations using natural language processing. Version 1 of the tool, published here, has updated functionality and enhanced capabilities to the beta version published in 2023. Please see User Documentation for further information on capabilities, as well as a guide for how to download and use the tool. If there are any feedback you would like to provide for the tool, please reach out with your feedback to edxsupport@netl.doe.gov. Disclaimer: This project was funded by the United States Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, in part, through a site support contract. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, nor the support contractor, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. The Geospatial and Information Substitution and Anonymization Tool (GISA) was developed jointly through the U.S. DOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management’s EDX4CCS Project, in part, from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law↗

Antarctic lake viromes reveal potential virus associated influences on nutrient cycling in ice-covered lakes

The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs) of Antarctica are a mosaic of extreme habitats which are dominated by microbial life. The MDVs include glacial melt holes, streams, lakes, and soils, which are interconnected through the transfer of energy and flux of inorganic and organic material via wind and hydrology. For the first time, we provide new data on the viral community structure and function in the MDVs through metagenomics of the planktonic and benthic mat communities of Lakes Bonney and Fryxell. Viral taxonomic diversity was compared across lakes and ecological function was investigated by characterizing auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) and predicting viral hosts. Our data suggest that viral communities differed between the lakes and among sites: these differences were connected to microbial host communities. AMGs were associated with the potential augmentation of multiple biogeochemical processes in host, most notably with phosphorus acquisition, organic nitrogen acquisition, sulfur oxidation, and photosynthesis. Viral genome abundances containing AMGs differed between the lakes and microbial mats, indicating site specialization. Using procrustes analysis, we also identified significant coupling between viral and bacterial communities (p = 0.001). Finally, host predictions indicate viral host preference among the assembled viromes. Collectively, our data show that: (i) viruses are uniquely distributed through the McMurdo Dry Valley lakes, (ii) their AMGs can contribute to overcoming host nutrient limitation and, (iii) viral and bacterial MDV communities are tightly coupled.

Microbiology↗

On the Stochastic Stability of Deep Markov Models

Deep Markov models (DMM) are generative models which are scalable and expressive generalization of Markov models for representation, learning, and inference problems. DMMs using deep neural networks to parametrize the transition of Markov probability distributions have recently been shown to provide more expressiveness in modeling sequential data and dynamical system responses. However, the fundamental stochastic stability guarantees of such models have not been thoroughly investigated. In this paper, we present a rigorous analytical method to prove the necessary and sufficient conditions of DMM's stochastic stability. This task is achieved by spectral analysis of the efficiently computed Jacobians of probabilistic maps modeled by deep neural networks. We make theoretical connections between the eigenvalues of neural network's weights and the different activation function types used on the stability and overall dynamic behavior of DMMs with Gaussian distributions. We empirically substantiate our theoretical results on stochastic stability and eigenvalue spectra via several numerical experiments. Formal stability guarantees of DMMs can substantially improve their robustness and trustworthiness, necessary for reliable use in safety-critical real-world applications.

Drgona, Jan↗

Bridging the Gap between the X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy and the Computational Catalysis Communities in Heterogeneous Catalysis: A Perspective on the Current and Future Research Directions

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) [extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES)] is a key technique within the heterogeneous catalysis community to probe the structure and properties of the active site(s) for a diverse range of catalytic materials. Furthermore, the interpretation of the raw experimental data to derive an atomistic picture of the catalyst requires modeling and analysis; the EXAFS data are compared to a model, and a goodness of fit parameter is used to judge the best fit. This EXAFS modeling can often be nontrivial and time-consuming; overcoming or improving these limitations remains a central challenge for the community. Considering these limitations, this Perspective highlights how recent developments in analysis software, increased availability of reliable computational models, and application of data science tools can be used to improve the speed, accuracy, and reliability of EXAFS interpretation. In particular, we emphasize the advantages of combining theory and EXAFS as a unified technique that should be treated as a standard (when applicable) to identify catalytic sites and not two separate complementary methods. Building on the recent trends in the computational catalysis community, we also present a community-driven approach to adopt FAIR Guiding Principles for the collection, analysis, dissemination, and storage of XAS data. Written with both the experimental and theory audience in mind, we provide a unified roadmap to foster collaborations between the two communities.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

SUGAR: An improved empirical model of Type Ia supernovae based on spectral features

Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are widely used to measure the expansion of the Universe. Improving distance measurements of SNe Ia is one technique to better constrain the acceleration of expansion and determine its physical nature. This document develops a new SNe Ia spectral energy distribution (SED) model, called the SUpernova Generator And Reconstructor (SUGAR), which improves the spectral description of SNe Ia, and consequently could improve the distance measurements. This model was constructed from SNe Ia spectral properties and spectrophotometric data from the Nearby Supernova Factory collaboration. In a first step, a principal component analysis-like method was used on spectral features measured at maximum light, which allowed us to extract the intrinsic properties of SNe Ia. Next, the intrinsic properties were used to extract the average extinction curve. Third, an interpolation using Gaussian processes facilitated using data taken at different epochs during the lifetime of an SN Ia and then projecting the data on a fixed time grid. Finally, the three steps were combined to build the SED model as a function of time and wavelength. This is the SUGAR model. Results. The main advancement in SUGAR is the addition of two additional parameters to characterize SNe Ia variability. The first is tied to the properties of SNe Ia ejecta velocity and the second correlates with their calcium lines. The addition of these parameters, as well as the high quality of the Nearby Supernova Factory data, makes SUGAR an accurate and efficient model for describing the spectra of normal SNe Ia as they brighten and fade. The performance of this model makes it an excellent SED model for experiments like the Zwicky Transient Facility, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, or the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Quantifying a partial polyamorphic transition in a cerium-based metallic glass during cooling

Cerium-based metallic glasses are prototype polyamorphous systems with pressure-induced polyamorphic transitions extensively reported. Cooling typically has a similar effect on materials as compression with regard to reducing volume. However, previous studies show dramatically different behavior of Ce-based metallic glasses between cooling and compression, whose origin remains unclear. Here, using in situ low-temperature synchrotron high-energy x-ray diffraction, the structural evolution of a Ce68Al10Cu20Co2 metallic glass is accurately determined and analyzed by a structure factor and a reduced pair distribution function (PDF) during cooling from 298 to 83 K. An unusually large linear thermal expansion coefficient is revealed, which is associated with both continuous but inconsistent structural changes between the two subpeaks of the first atomic shell in terms of average bond lengths and coordination numbers. These phenomena are suggested to be attributed to a gradual 4f electron delocalization of only a minimal amount (∼2.6% at 83 K) of Ce atoms by quantitative analysis of the PDF data. However, a previously expected global polymorphic transition from a low-density amorphous state to a high-density amorphous state with an abrupt volume collapse is not observed. Moreover, electrical resistivity also shows a continuous increase during cooling without any sharp change. It is clarified that cryogenic temperatures could facilitate but are not powerful enough alone to trigger a global polymorphic transition in the Ce68Al10Cu20Co2 metallic glass, suggesting a wide distribution of its local atomic environment.

Chen, Zhi↗

Weak lensing of Type Ia Supernovae from the Dark Energy Survey

ABSTRACT We consider the effects of weak gravitational lensing on observations of 196 spectroscopically confirmed Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) from years 1 to 3 of the Dark Energy Survey (DES). We simultaneously measure both the angular correlation function and the non-Gaussian skewness caused by weak lensing. This approach has the advantage of being insensitive to the intrinsic dispersion of SNe Ia magnitudes. We model the amplitude of both effects as a function of σ8, and find σ8 =1.2$^{+0.9}_{-0.8}$. We also apply our method to a subsample of 488 SNe from the Joint Light-curve Analysis (JLA; chosen to match the redshift range we use for this work), and find σ8 =0.8$^{+1.1}_{-0.7}$. The comparable uncertainty in σ8 between DES–SN and the larger number of SNe from JLA highlights the benefits of homogeneity of the DES–SN sample, and improvements in the calibration and data analysis.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Dark Energy Survey: A 2.1% measurement of the angular baryonic acoustic oscillation scale at redshift z eff = 0.85 from the final dataset

Here, we present the angular diameter distance measurement obtained with the baryonic acoustic oscillation (BAO) feature from galaxy clustering in the completed Dark Energy Survey, consisting of six years (Y6) of observations. We use the Y6 BAO galaxy sample, optimized for BAO science in the redshift range 0.6 < z <1.2, with an effective redshift at z eff = 0.85 and split into six tomographic bins. The sample has nearly 16 million galaxies over 4,273 square degrees. Our consensus measurement constrains the ratio of the angular distance to sound horizon scale to D M ⁡(z eff )/r d = 19.51 ± 0.41 (at 68.3% confidence interval), resulting from comparing the BAO position in our data to that predicted by planck Λ⁢CDM via the BAO shift parameter α =(D M /r d )/(D M /r d ) PLANCK . To achieve this, the BAO shift is measured with three different methods, angular correlation function (ACF), angular power spectrum (APS), and projected correlation function (PCF), obtaining α = 0.952 ± 0.023, 0.962 ± 0.022, and 0.955 ± 0.020, respectively, which we combine to α = 0.957 ± 0.020, including systematic errors. When compared with the Λ⁢CDM model that best fits planck data, this measurement is found to be 4.3% and 2.1⁢σ below the angular BAO scale predicted. To date, it represents the most precise angular BAO measurement at z > 0.75 from any survey and the most precise measurement at any redshift from photometric surveys. The analysis was performed blinded to the BAO position, and it is shown to be robust against analysis choices, data removal, redshift calibrations, and observational systematics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Global analysis of the yeast knockout phenome

Genome-wide phenotypic screens in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, enabled by its knockout collection, have produced the largest, richest, and most systematic phenotypic description of any organism. However, integrative analyses of this rich data source have been virtually impossible because of the lack of a central data repository and consistent metadata annotations. Here, we describe the aggregation, harmonization, and analysis of ~14,500 yeast knockout screens, which we call Yeast Phenome. Using this unique dataset, we characterized two unknown genes (YHR045W and YGL117W) and showed that tryptophan starvation is a by-product of many chemical treatments. Furthermore, we uncovered an exponential relationship between phenotypic similarity and intergenic distance, which suggests that gene positions in both yeast and human genomes are optimized for function.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗