Bureau of Energy

Summary The most general type of linear estimate is defined for a general sampling design. It is demonstrated that an unbiased linear estimate with least variance does not exist uniquely for the entire class of linear estimates. A slightly modified criterion for best estimate, with reference to certain given prior information is proposed. Some sampling designs have been analysed accordingly.

THE investigation of the distribution of cases of multiple sclerosis in Switzerland between the years 1918 and 1922 seems to have established that the frequency of this disease can vary greatly in different geographic locations.1 The subsequent studies by Gram2 in Denmark and more recent investigations in the United States3 , 4 leave little doubt that these variations may be real and not due to technical errors in diagnosis, methods of collecting the data and so forth.In another study, Swank5 has suggested the possibility that these variations are related directly to the amount (and possibly the nature) of the fat consumption. . . .

Overweight and obesity are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, although the range of body weights that is optimal for health is controversial. It is less clear whether weight loss benefits longevity and hence whether weight reduction is justified as a prime goal for all individuals who are overweight (normally defined as BMI>25 kg/m2). The purpose of the present review was to examine the evidence base for recommending weight loss by diet and lifestyle change as a means of prolonging life. An electronic search identified twenty-six eligible prospective studies that monitored subsequent mortality risk following weight loss by lifestyle change, published up to 2008. Data were extracted and further analysed by meta-analysis, giving particular attention to the influence of confounders. Moderator variables such as reason for weight loss (intentional, unintentional), baseline health status (healthy, unhealthy), baseline BMI (normal, overweight, obese), method used to estimate weight loss (measured weight loss, reported weight loss) and whether models adjusted for physical activity (adjusted data, unadjusted data) were used to classify subgroups for separate analysis. Intentional weight loss per se had a neutral effect on all-cause mortality (relative risk (RR) 1.01; P = 0.89), while weight loss which was unintentional or ill-defined was associated with excess risk of 22 to 39 %. Intentional weight loss had a small benefit for individuals classified as unhealthy (with obesity-related risk factors) (RR 0.87 (95 % CI 0.77, 0.99); P = 0.028), especially unhealthy obese (RR 0.84 (95 % CI 0.73, 0.97); P = 0.018), but appeared to be associated with slightly increased mortality for healthy individuals (RR 1.11 (95 % CI 1.00, 1.22); P = 0.05), and for those who were overweight but not obese (RR 1.09 (95 % CI 1.02, 1.17); P = 0.008). There was no evidence for weight loss conferring either benefit or risk among healthy obese. In conclusion, the available evidence does not support solely advising overweight or obese individuals who are otherwise healthy to lose weight as a means of prolonging life. Other aspects of a healthy lifestyle, especially exercise and dietary quality, should be considered. However, well-designed intervention studies are needed clearly to disentangle the influence of physical activity, diet strategy and body composition, in order to define appropriate advice to those populations that might be expected to benefit.

The adulteration by synthetic therapeutic substances of traditional Chinese medicines has been reported on various occasions and has been a public health concern in Taiwan over the past several years. A large-scale effort was initiated in 1992 to screen traditional Chinese medicines that were suspected of adulteration with synthetic therapeutic substances. The term "adulteration" refers to traditional Chinese medicines that are tested and found to contain chemical substances not prescribed or labeled as part of the intended use. A total of 2,609 samples were collected by eight major general hospitals in Taiwan. Samples were collected through physicians' referrals during patients visits. The samples were analyzed by hospital pharmacists following the established standard procedures in comparison to references by thin-layer chromatography. An average of 23.7% (n = 618) of the samples collected from the eight hospitals were adulterated. Four samples with either a rheumatoid or an antiinflammatory indication contained six different kinds of adulterants. More than half (52.8%) of the adulterated traditional Chinese medicines contained two or more adulterants. The sources of adulterated samples and their claimed indications, as well as the most frequently detected synthetic therapeutic substances, are presented in this report. The controversies regarding the combination of synthetic therapeutic substances and traditional Chinese medicines without adequate labeling should be resolved through regulatory actions for better safety of drug use.

Both descriptive and analytical studies were carried out to examine epidemiologic characteristics and multiple risk factors of stomach cancer in Taiwan. The age-adjusted mortality rate of stomach cancer has been decreasing since the early 1970s for both males and females. The male-to-female ratio of the disease has remained around 2:1 in the past three decades. Comparison of the incidence of stomach cancer among Chinese in different countries showed a much lower incidence among Chinese in the USA than those in southeastern Asia. A hospital-based matched case-control study carried out in Taipei metropolitan areas showed a positive association of stomach cancer with blood type A, chronic gastric diseases, cigarette smoking, alcohol drinking, green tea drinking as well as consumption of salted meat, cured meat, smoked food, fried food and fermented beans. There was also a significant negative association between the disease and the consumption of milk.

Research Article| September 01, 2001 Coseismic hydrologic response of an alluvial fan to the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake, Taiwan Chi-yuen Wang; Chi-yuen Wang 1Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Li-Hsin Cheng; Li-Hsin Cheng 2Water Resources Bureau, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Chi-Van Chin; Chi-Van Chin 2Water Resources Bureau, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Shui-Beih Yu Shui-Beih Yu 3Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica Nankang, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (2001) 29 (9): 831–834. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<0831:CHROAA>2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 05 Jan 2001 rev-recd: 01 May 2001 accepted: 18 May 2001 first online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Chi-yuen Wang, Li-Hsin Cheng, Chi-Van Chin, Shui-Beih Yu; Coseismic hydrologic response of an alluvial fan to the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake, Taiwan. Geology 2001;; 29 (9): 831–834. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<0831:CHROAA>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Widespread coseismic change in pore-water pressure across a large alluvial fan in central Taiwan in the 1999 Chi-Chi (Mw = 7.5) earthquake was captured for the first time by a dense network of hydrologic monitoring wells. The complex, yet systematic, pattern in the water-pressure change appears inconsistent with the existing models; it requires a model that is based on the nonlinear mechanical behavior of sediments under earthquake shaking. This paper presents direct field evidence that earthquake shaking causes rising pore pressure in alluvial fans, which in turn may lead to landslides, even on very gentle slopes. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Abstract As gas hydrate energy assessment matures worldwide, emphasis has evolved away from confirmation of the mere presence of gas hydrate to the more complex issue of prospecting for those specific accumulations that are viable resource targets. Gas hydrate exploration now integrates the unique pressure and temperature preconditions for gas hydrate occurrence with those concepts and practices that are the basis for conventional oil and gas exploration. We have aimed to assimilate the lessons learned to date in global gas hydrate exploration to outline a generalized prospecting approach as follows: (1) use existing well and geophysical data to delineate the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ), (2) identify and evaluate potential direct indications of hydrate occurrence through evaluation of interval of elevated acoustic velocity and/or seismic events of prospective amplitude and polarity, (3) mitigate geologic risk via regional seismic and stratigraphic facies analysis as well as seismic mapping of amplitude distribution along prospective horizons, and (4) mitigate further prospect risk through assessment of the evidence of gas presence and migration into the GHSZ. Although a wide range of occurrence types might ultimately become viable energy supply options, this approach, which has been tested in only a small number of locations worldwide, has directed prospect evaluation toward those sand-hosted, high-saturation occurrences that were presently considered to have the greatest future commercial potential.

Magmatic arcs typically exhibit non-steady-state evolution with episodic flare-ups and lulls, yet the main drivers remain contentious. Situated in the southwest margin of Southeast Asia, Sumatra records a long-lived magmatic arc that is still poorly constrained in age and tempo. Detrital zircon data from Sumatra delineate major arc magmatic pulses at ca. 212, 102-85, 52, and 22-11 Ma. The mid-Cretaceous to early Eocene zircons mostly yield high positive εHf(t) values, indicating magma derivation from juvenile sources and matching well with those of the Gangdese batholiths in the southern Lhasa terrane. These similarities substantiate an extended (~6000 km) Neo-Tethyan arc system from southern Tibet to Sumatra that exhibits concurrent magmatic lulls (ca. 150-105 and 85-65 Ma) and flare-ups (ca. 105-85 and 65-40 Ma). The Late Cretaceous magmatic lull coincided with a period of strong regional deformation and increasingly fast northward drift of India, likely attributable to Neo-Tethyan flat slab subduction. Periodic pulses of Neo-Tethyan arc magmatism most likely correlated with repeated steepening and shallowing of slab dip, rather than India-Eurasia convergence rates.

BACKGROUND: The impact of a disaster on extreme post-traumatic responses of the victims, such as suicide, remains unclear. We conducted this study to investigate the risk of committing suicide between victims and non-victims after the 1999 Taiwan earthquake. METHODS: This population cohort study linked the National Health Insurance files, family registration, and death certificates. It consists of the 3 432 705 residents aged >/=15 years of central Taiwan, 1998-2000. They were stratified into victims (n = 301 327) and non-victims (n = 3 131 378). Victims refer to those who lost co-resident family members, were injured, or experienced property loss during the earthquake. Non-victims refers to all others. The suicide rate was calculated for the period 2-15 months after the earthquake. Adjusted odds ratios were estimated with logistic regression. RESULTS: After adjusting for residential location, age, gender, major disease status, and level of urbanization, we found that victims were 1.46 times more likely than non-victims to commit suicide following an earthquake (95% CI: 1.11, 1.92). CONCLUSIONS: Given the large study population and individual information available to identify victim status, this study was able to detect a statistically significant earthquake effect on suicide rate. This effect on suicide might be diluted if only geographically based stratification were possible, as opposed to victim status stratifications. Mental health programmes or other preventive strategies might be more effective by specifically targeting victims rather than by simply targeting individuals living in earthquake-affected areas.

Zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF67) has been regarded as an effective energy storage material due to its high surface area and electroactive cobalt center. Carbonizing ZIF67 can enhance electrical conductivity by converting 2-methylimidazole (2-melm) to carbon with cobalt doping. In this work, a novel in situ electrospinning is proposed to fabricate carbonized ZIF67 on carbon fiber (C67@PAN-OC) as a freestanding supercapacitor electrode. Polyacrylonitrile solution containing a cobalt precursor is used for electrospinning, and produced fibers are immersed in 2-melm to form ZIF67. Individually grown carbonized ZIF67 on carbon fiber is obtained using the in situ electrospinning method, while the one-body mixed carbon electrode is formed using the ex situ electrospinning method. A highest specific capacitance (CF) of 386.3 F/g at 20 mV/s is obtained for the in situ synthesized C67@PAN-OC electrode due to the largest electrochemical surface area and the smallest resistance, while the ex situ synthesized electrode only shows a CF value of 27.7 F/g. A symmetric supercapacitor (SSC) assembled using the optimized C67@PAN-OC electrodes and gel electrolytes shows a maximum energy density of 9.64 kWh/kg at 0.55 kW/kg and a CF retention of 59.5% after 1000 times charge/discharge process. A CF retention of 75.6% after bending 100 times is also obtained for SSC.

The objective of this paper is to propose the development of a multiinput dc-dc converter (MIC) family, which is composed of isolated and/or nonisolated dc-dc converters. By analyzing five basic isolated dc-dc converters, four isolated pulsating voltage source cells and three isolated pulsating current source cells are generated. Moreover, a semiisolated multiinput converter (S-MIC) for hybrid PV/wind power charger system which can simplify the power system, reduce the cost, deliver continuous power, and overcome high-voltage-transfer-ratio problems is proposed. In this paper, the operational principle of the proposed S-MIC is explained, the small-signal ac model is derived, and the controller design is developed. Computer simulations and experimental results are presented to verify the accuracy of the proposed small-signal ac model and the performance of the proposed S-MIC.

Research Article| August 01, 2011 Offshore sedimentary effects of the 12 January 2010 Haiti earthquake Cecilia M. McHugh; Cecilia M. McHugh 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Leonardo Seeber; Leonardo Seeber 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Nicole Braudy; Nicole Braudy 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Marie-Helene Cormier; Marie-Helene Cormier 3University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Marcy B. Davis; Marcy B. Davis 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar John B. Diebold; John B. Diebold 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Nicole Dieudonne; Nicole Dieudonne 5Bureau of Mines and Energy, Port-au-Prince, Haiti Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Roby Douilly; Roby Douilly 6Universite d'Etat de Haiti, Haiti Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Sean P.S. Gulick; Sean P.S. Gulick 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Matthew J. Hornbach; Matthew J. Hornbach 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Harold E. Johnson, III; Harold E. Johnson, III 3University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Katherine Ryan Mishkin; Katherine Ryan Mishkin 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Christopher C. Sorlien; Christopher C. Sorlien 7University of California−Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Michael S. Steckler; Michael S. Steckler 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Steeve J. Symithe; Steeve J. Symithe 6Universite d'Etat de Haiti, Haiti Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar John Templeton John Templeton 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Cecilia M. McHugh 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Leonardo Seeber 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Nicole Braudy 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA Marie-Helene Cormier 3University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA Marcy B. Davis 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA John B. Diebold 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Nicole Dieudonne 5Bureau of Mines and Energy, Port-au-Prince, Haiti Roby Douilly 6Universite d'Etat de Haiti, Haiti Sean P.S. Gulick 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA Matthew J. Hornbach 4University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, USA Harold E. Johnson, III 3University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA Katherine Ryan Mishkin 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York 11367, USA Christopher C. Sorlien 7University of California−Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA Michael S. Steckler 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Steeve J. Symithe 6Universite d'Etat de Haiti, Haiti John Templeton 2Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 12 Oct 2010 Revision Received: 17 Feb 2011 Accepted: 09 Mar 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2011 Geological Society of America Geology (2011) 39 (8): 723–726. https://doi.org/10.1130/G31815.1 Article history Received: 12 Oct 2010 Revision Received: 17 Feb 2011 Accepted: 09 Mar 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Cecilia M. McHugh, Leonardo Seeber, Nicole Braudy, Marie-Helene Cormier, Marcy B. Davis, John B. Diebold, Nicole Dieudonne, Roby Douilly, Sean P.S. Gulick, Matthew J. Hornbach, Harold E. Johnson, Katherine Ryan Mishkin, Christopher C. Sorlien, Michael S. Steckler, Steeve J. Symithe, John Templeton; Offshore sedimentary effects of the 12 January 2010 Haiti earthquake. Geology 2011;; 39 (8): 723–726. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G31815.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Although the 12 January 2010 Haiti earthquake was one of the deadliest earthquakes in history, it left no clear geological evidence of rupture on land. As a tectonic event, the earthquake was complex; even the faults involved remain unclear. Using geophysical and coring data, we document direct evidence of the sedimentation generated by the catastrophic 12 January 2010 earthquake offshore. These studies document submarine paleoseismology methods that can be used for assessing seismic risk in this and other tectonic settings such as the California San Andreas fault, where deeper buried blind thrusts may exist. Shaking by the 12 January main shock triggered sediment failures and turbidity currents from coastal sources to deep-water sinks. An ∼0.05 km3 turbidite was deposited in the Canal du Sud basin (1750 m water depth) over 50 km2. Almost 2 months after the main shock, a 600-m-thick sediment plume was still present in the lowermost water column at this location. The turbidite was time correlated to the 12 January earthquake by the excess 234Th in the sediments. With a half-life of 24 days, its presence documents an influx of terrigenous sediment mixing with marine sources derived from the basin slopes. This turbidite, and older ones observed beneath it, displays complex cross-bedded and fining-upward stratigraphy indicative of long waves and seiche oscillations that are consistent with locally reported tsunamis. This 12 January sedimentary record highlights the potential for submarine paleoseismology to unravel the seismic history of continental transform boundaries such as the Enriquillo–Plantain Garden fault in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Jamaica, as well as other tectonic settings where no clear land-based evidence for a rupture exists. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Governments, environmental groups and industry associations are reducing greenhouse gas emissions to insure environmental sustainability. Manufacturing plays an important role in economic development but is a main cause of global warming since production requires energy consumption. The supply chain leadership coalition has requested all members to publish their carbon emission data and to reduce emissions. In addition, the International Standard Organization (ISO) has legislated and published ISO14064 as an industrial guideline to control global greenhouse gas emissions. The British Standards Institution developed PAS2050 as the world's first government regulation to control a product's carbon footprint. Providing carbon labelling on products increases product appeals and sales revenues, but also increases manufacturing costs. This research aims to minimise a product's carbon footprint, while controlling its manufacturing cost during collaborative green product design and production planning. An economic input–output life cycle assessment approach is used to evaluate the carbon emissions of new products. The life cycle assessment identifies problematic carbon emissions within the supply chain. Based on the input and output data, the research applies system dynamics modelling to simulate and identify green product redesigns with cost-effective carbon footprints during manufacturing. The purpose of this research is to derive optimal means to reduce the carbon footprint for green product development and production. Finally, the paper uses the case of an electronic image projector to demonstrate the application of the methodology.

We detected 12 landquakes in Taiwan with collapse areas between 0.27 and 2.48 km2 associated with rock collapse, rockslide and debris and/or rock avalanche during the passage of Typhoon Morakot in 2009. These events were recorded by seismic stations of the Broadband Array in Taiwan for Seismology. Their locations were determined by a cross-correlation technique that maximizes the coherency of horizontal envelope function among seismic stations with a mean location error of 1.92 km. We applied time-frequency analysis to estimate the bandwidth of seismic energy generated by the landquakes. The predominant frequency ranges from 0.5 to 5.0 Hz, with higher-frequency signals likely caused by block impact. We extracted signal duration (SD), peak ground velocity, rise time (TR), area of velocity envelope function (AE) from the closest station and estimated the collapse area (AC) and run-out distance (DR) by mapping satellite images. Based on aforementioned seismic and geometrical parameters, we defined the potential of initial impact (PI), the frequency of rock impact signal (fI) and the mean quasi-front velocity (Vf) as indicators of landquake types, especially for events with dam formation (dam-formation-type events). We also derived an empirical linear relationship between the envelope area (AE) and collapse area (AC) with a high correlation coefficient of 0.83. Our automatic approach is very effective for rapid determination of landquake centroid location and collapse area, and for identifying dam-formation event using records from existing real-time broad-band seismic networks, thus providing an important alternative for landquake hazard mitigation.

A new reconstruction of changes in Taiwan's land cover and estimated uncertainty between 1904 and 2015 is presented. The reconstruction is made by integrating geographical information from historical maps and SPOT satellite images, to obtain spatially explicit land cover maps with a resolution of 500 × 500 m and distinguishes six land cover classes: forests, grasslands, agricultural land, inland water, built-up land, and bare soil. The temporal resolution is unbalanced being derived from four historical maps describing the land cover between 1904 and 1994 and five mosaic satellite images describing the land cover between 1995 and 2015. The uncertainty of the historical maps is quantified to show the aggregation error whereas the uncertainty of the satellite images is quantified as classification error. Since 1904, Taiwan, as a developing country, has gone through a not unusual sequence of population growth and subsequent urbanization, a decoupling of the demand for agricultural land from population growth, and a transition from shrinking in forest area to forest expansion. This new land cover reconstruction is expected to contribute to future revisions of global land cover reconstructions as well as to studies of (gross) land cover changes, the carbon budget, regional climate, urban heat islands, and air and water pollution at the national and sub-national level.

ABSTRACT The University of Texas Hydrate Pressure Coring Expedition (UT-GOM2-1) recovered cores at near in situ formation pressures from a gas hydrate reservoir composed of sandy silt and clayey silt beds in Green Canyon Block 955 in the deep-water Gulf of Mexico. The expedition results are synthesized and linked to other detailed analyses presented in this volume. Millimeter- to meter-scale beds of sandy silt and clayey silt are interbedded on the levee of a turbidite channel. The hydrate saturation (the volume fraction of the pore space occupied by hydrate) in the sandy silts ranges from 79% to 93%, and there is little to no hydrate in the clayey silt. Gas from the hydrates is composed of nearly pure methane (99.99%) with less than 400 ppm of ethane or heavier hydrocarbons. The δ13C values from the methane are depleted (−60‰ to −65‰ Vienna Peedee belemnite), and it is interpreted that the gases were largely generated by primary microbial methanogenesis but that low concentrations of propane or heavier hydrocarbons record at least trace thermogenic components. The in situ pore-water salinity is very close to that of seawater. This suggests that the excess salinity generated during hydrate formation diffused away because the hydrate formed slowly or because it formed long ago. Because the sandy silt deposits have high hydrate concentration and high intrinsic permeability, they may represent a class of reservoir that can be economically developed. Results from this expedition will inform a new generation of reservoir simulation models that will illuminate how these reservoirs might be best produced.

India has great potential to accelerate use of endowed renewable resources in powering its growing economy with a secure and affordable energy supply. The Government of India recognizes that development of local, renewable resources will be critical to ensure that India is able to meet both economic and environmental objectives and has supported the development of renewable energy through severalpolicy actions. This paper describes the status of renewable energy in India as of DIREC 2010. It begins by describing the institutional framework guiding energy development in India, the main policy drivers impacting energy, and the major policy actions India has taken that impact renewable energy deployment. The paper presents estimates of potential for wind, solar, small hydro, and bioenergyand the deployment of each of these technologies to date in India. The potential for India to meet both large-scale generation needs and provide access to remote, unelectrified populations are covered. Finally, the enabling environment required to facilitate rapid scale of renewables is discussed, including issues of technology transfer and the status of financing in India.

Abstract Red Snapper Lutjanus campechanus are the most economically important reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico and a heavily targeted fishery. When brought to the surface from deep water, this species often suffers pressure related injuries collectively known as barotrauma. This trauma results in high discard mortality and has affected recovery of the fishery. In laboratory experiments using hyperbaric chambers, we assessed sublethal effects of barotrauma and subsequent survival rates of Red Snapper after capture events from pressures corresponding to 30 and 60 m deep. We then evaluated the use of rapid recompression and venting to increase survival and improve recovery after release in this controlled environment. Vented fish in simulated surface release and rapid recompression treatments had 100% survival. Fish released at the surface that were not vented had 67% survival after decompression from 30 m but only 17% survival from 60 m, while nonvented rapidly recompressed fish had 100% survival from 30 m and 83% survival from 60 m. Fish that were vented upon release at the surface showed significantly better ability to achieve an upright orientation and evade a simulated predator. Results showed clear benefits of venting or recompression. Our data also show strong depth effects resulting in increased barotrauma injuries, more impaired reflexes, and greater mortality as depth increases. Overall, our data support venting or rapid recompression as effective tools for alleviating barotrauma symptoms, improving predator evasion, and increasing overall survival. Received January 31, 2014; accepted April 7, 2014

This study investigates the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) data from FORMOSAT-7/COSMIC-2 (FS7/C2), which provides considerably more and deeper profiles at lower latitudes than those from the former FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC (FS3/C). The statistical analysis of six-month RO data shows that the rate of penetration depth below 1 km height within ±45° latitudes can reach 80% for FS7/C2, significantly higher than 40% for FS3/C. For verification, FS7/C2 RO data are compared with the observations from chartered missions that provided aircraft dropsondes and on-board radiosondes, with closer observation times and distances from the oceanic RO occultation over the South China Sea and near a typhoon circulation region. The collocated comparisons indicate that FS7/C2 RO data are reliable, with small deviations from the ground-truth observations. The RO profiles are compared with collocated radiosondes, RO data from other missions, global analyses of ERA5 and National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) final (FNL), and satellite retrievals of NOAA Unique Combined Atmospheric Processing System (NCAPS). The comparisons exhibit consistent vertical variations, showing absolute mean differences and standard deviations of temperature profiles less than 0.5 °C and 1.5 °C, respectively, and deviations of water vapor pressure within 2 hPa in the lower troposphere. From the latitudinal distributions of mean difference and standard deviation (STD), the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) is evidentially shown in the comparisons, especially for the NUCAPS, which shows a larger deviation in moisture when compared to FS7/C2 RO data. The sensitivity of data collocation in time departure and spatial distance among different datasets are presented in this study as well.

Increased oxidative stress induces inflammation to several tissues/organs leading to cell death and long-term injury. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and autophagic regulatory functions has been widely used as preventive or therapeutic strategy in modern medicine. Oxidative stress and inflammation have been widely reported to contribute to cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation, hepatotoxicity, or sympathetic activation-induced liver inflammation, lipopolysaccharide-induced renal inflammation, and substance P-mediated neurogenic hyperactive bladder based on clinical findings. In this review, we introduce several evidences for TCM treatment including Monascus adlay (MA) produced by inoculating adlay (Cois lachrymal-jobi L. var. ma-yuen Stapf) with Monascus purpureus on lung injury, Amla (Emblica officinalis Gaertn. of Euphorbiaceae family) on hepatotoxin-induced liver inflammation, Virgate Wormwood Decoction (Yīn Chén Hāo tāng) and its active component genipin on sympathetic activation-induced liver inflammation, and green tea extract and its active components, catechins, or a modified TCM formula Five Stranguries Powder (Wǔ Lén Sǎn) plus Crataegi Fructus (Shān Zhā) on hyperactive bladder. The pathophysiologic and molecular mechanisms of TCM on ameliorating inflammatory diseases are discussed in the review.