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Displaying entries 76 through 90 of 90 found.

Earth Earns: An Open CoCreative Earthropocene to Astropocene PediaVerse

Zalasiewicz, Jan. et al. The meaning of the Anthropocene: why it matters even without a formal geological definition. Nature. August 24, 2024. After a Geological Society recently failed to agree on a definition, senior authorities JZ and Colin Waters, University of Leicester, Julia Adeney Thomas, University of Notre Dame, Simon Turner, University College London and Martin Head, Brock University, Ontario contend that the concept of a new era whereof human populations have a planetary impact is a practical reality serve and can inform studies and policy.

Even though geologists have rejected the designation of an Anthropocene epoch, the idea of a major planetary transition in the mid-twentieth century remains useful across physical and social sciences, the humanities and policy. (Summary) An Anthropocene concept anchored to begin in the mid-twentieth century is aligned with both the Great Acceleration and a fundamental shift in Earth’s state. Understanding the Anthropocene in this way would prevent the current confusion of the term meaning different things in different contexts. It complies with the term’s originally intended meaning, and also reflects a clear evidence-based geological signature. (5)
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The Great Acceleration is a term used to describe the rapid and widespread increase in human activity and its impact on Earth's natural systems, which began around the mid-20th century. It is often associated with the Anthropocene epoch, a proposed geological era marked by significant human influence on the Earth's ecosystems and climate. The Great Acceleration encompasses various social, economic, and environmental changes that have occurred on a global scale since the 1950s.

Faranda, Davide, et al. Statistical physics and dynamical systems perspectives on geophysical extreme events. Physical Review E.. 110/041001, October, 2024. Eighteen environmental physicists posted in Sweden, France, Italy, Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands first identify a disconnect between past studies of wild weather and geologic trauma and what must be their fundamental source in physical phenomena. This natural grounding can then facilitate an integration with current complexity theories in practice and stochastic principles and forces. In regard, by this autumnal season after two record hurricanes, here is another instance of a latest cross-synthesis as hopefully Earthica learns in time.

Statistical physics and dynamical systems theory are key tools to study geophysical events such as temperature extremes, cyclones, geomagnetic storms, and many others. Despite intrinsic differences, they all originate as deviations from the typical trajectories of a geophysical system, resulting in coherent structures at spatial and temporal scales. While statistical extreme value analysis techniques are capable of providing return times and probabilities of occurrence of certain geophysical events, they are not apt to account for their underlying physics. This paper outlines this knowledge gap, presenting new formalisms and stochastic approaches tailored to the study of extreme geophysical events.

Hazeleger, W. and J. Aerts. Digital twins of the Earth with and for humans. Communications Earth & Environment.. vol 5/art 463, 2024. Some thirty ecomputer scientists across Europe such as Utrecht University, MPI Meteorology, Barcelona Supercomputing Center and the University of Valencia describe methods and advances to this approach which constructs a cyber-model of some entity such as a biological organ, brain, medical procedure. In this regard, the subject will be the whole dynamic Earth system, which can then be studied, perturbed and so on.

Digital twins are computerized representations which span scales and domains. Their purpose is to monitor, forecast and assess the Earth system and the consequences of human interventions. Providing users with the capability to interact with and interrogate, this cyberspace method can help identify and address environmental challenges. While existing versions primarily represent the physical world, since the social worlds are interconnected, we argue that humans must be accounted for both within digital twin models. These further inclusions can reach substantial insights into Earth system dynamics and empower people’s action.

Moller, Tessa, et al. Achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions are critical to limit climate tipping risks. Nature Communications.. 15/6192, 2024. International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Austria and Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research scholars including Johan Rockstrom and Jonathon Donges apply systems theories to gain better understandings of dynamic, nonlinear world weather.

Under current emission trajectories, overshooting the Paris global warming limit of 1.5 °C is a distinct possibility and increases the chance of triggering climate tipping points. Here, we investigate several policy-relevant future emission scenarios using an Earth system model of four interconnected precarious elements. We show that following current policies would commit to a 45% tipping risk even if temperatures are brought back to below 1.5 °C. Our results further demand stringent emission reductions in the current decade for planetary stability.

Velasco-Reyes, Erick, et al. Velasco-Reyes, Erick, et al. Tracing the sources of paleotsunamis using Bayesian frameworks. Communications Earth & Environment. Vol. 5/Art. 478, 2024. Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan researchers have achieved advanced technical capabilities that can now reach back over a millennium to study these earlier quakes and consequent mega-wave impacts. One might muse how amazing it is that after many centuries of human history a collective sapiensphere at last appears which is able to retrieve and quantify such paleophenomena. The benefit is to then gain better forecasting abilities.

Paleotsunami deposits provide a compelling record of these prior events, including their occurrence and magnitudes. However, studies of sedimentary evidence is difficult due to the complex interplay between hydrodynamic and geological phenomena. Here, we introduce a novel approach that employs Bayesian inference methods to divide the tsunami process into segments to enable more precise modelling of the sources. We calculated that the 869 Jogan earthquake had a magnitude of 8.84 to 9.1. (Excerpt)

Ahvenharju, Sanna, et al. Individual futures consciousness: Psychology behind the five-dimensional Futures Consciousness scale.. Futures. Volume 128, 2021. University of Turku, University of Kent, UK and University of Geneva scholars contend that a positive awareness of better days to come would provide a hopeful incentive. See also The seeds of tomorrow: Investigating adolescent perception with the Futures Consciousness scale by Fanny Lalot, et al in Futures (September 2024).

Future consciousness refers to the human capacity to understand, anticipate, prepare for, and embrace the future. A Futures Consciousness Scale has been developed based on a five-dimensional model: i) Time Perspective, ii) Agency Beliefs, iii) Openness to Alternatives, iv) Systems Perception, and v) Concern for Others. The present article reviews the psychological theories, concepts and constructs that underlie the FC Scale. It examines how the five dimensions could be manifested in individual behaviour, how they relate to each other and to other psychological phenomena.

Rojo-Francàs, Abel, et al. Anomalous quantum transport in fractal lattices.. Communications Physics. vol. 7/art. 259, 2024. We cite this paper by Donostia International Physics Center, Spain, Universitat de Barcelona, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, and the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology physicists for its self-similar structural content and as one more example of seemingly unlimited Earthuman technical abilities to range across these subatomic material frontiers on an intended course to initiate a new second, ecosmic cocreation.

Fractal lattices are self-similar structures with repeated patterns on different scales. Here, we study the dynamical properties of two fractal lattices, the Sierpiński gasket and the Sierpiński carpet. While the gasket exhibits sub-diffusive behavior, sub-ballistic transport occurs in the carpet, due to the systems’ spectral properties. As a technological application, we discuss a memory effect in the Sierpiński gasket which reads off the phase information of an initial state from the spatial distribution after long evolution times. (Excerpt)

In view of the computational complexity of quantum many-body physics and open quantum systems, we expect that quantum simulations with interacting particles on fractal lattices will be particularly useful and provide important new insights into exotic quantum phenomena. So far, theoretical attempts to study quantum many-body phases in fractal lattices include studies of quantum phase transitions and quantum criticality in interacting spin models, the study of interacting topological systems, in particular with respect to the fate of anyons. (6)

Costello, Alan. et al.. Efficient genetic code expansion without host genome modifications. Nature Biotechnology. September, 2024. Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA bioengineers describe new methods and techniques by which to readily parse, edit and amend nature’s original evolutionary four-letter version. After some billion years, an intelligent, collaborative personsphere sapience can embark upon a second intentional phase, so it seems, so as to proceed with its respectful, ethical, beneficial revised continuance.

Supplementing translation with noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) can yield protein sequences with new-to-nature functions but existing ncAA strategies have low efficiency. We uncover codon usage as an unrecognized contributor to efficient genetic code expansion. Relying only on Escherichia coli strains, we develop a plasmid-based codon compression that minimizes context dependence and improves ncAA incorporation at quadruplet codons. We confirm that this strategy is compatible with all known genetic code expansion resources. Our approach will accelerate innovations in modified multiplex genetic codes and chemically diverse biomolecules. (Excerpt)

Gorb, Stanislav and Wencke Krings. Editorial: Composite materials in biological and bioinspired systems: Part II, Biological and bioinspired composites. Interface Focus. June, 2024. Stanislav and Wencke Krings

Nature has been a source of inspiration for scientists seeking to understand and replicate its remarkable structures for stronger, lighter, resilient materials. Organisms have perfected them through their evolution, resulting in biological composites across the six kingdoms of life. One of the key features is their hierarchical structure, which spans multiple length scales. At the nanoscale, they consist of molecular building blocks arranged in patterns to optimize mechanical strength and flexibility. They then assemble into larger structures, such as fibres, lamellae, compartments, which enhance properties through reinforcement. As highlighted in this theme issue, the collaborative synergy between biology and materials science not only drives technological advancement but also enriches our comprehension of organisms shaped by biological evolution.

Matuszyńska,, Anna, et al. A New Era of Synthetic Biology: Microbial Community Design. Synthetic Biology. 9/1, 2024. As this accessible scientific frontier opens far and wide, in this Oxford journal RWTH Aachen University, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf and Michigan State University computational bioresearchers can scope out careful project plans based upon latest realizations that no bacteria live alone. In fact they form filmy islands with a dynamic responsiveness to environments. As our knowledge grows about these lifestyles, better methods of disease mitigation, novel applications and more can proceed. See also Building Synthetic Cells from the Technology Infrastructure to Cellular Entities by Lynn Rothschild, et al in ACS Synthetic Biology (13/4, 2024).

Synthetic biology conceptualizes biological complexity as network systems with functionalities. With novel abilities to synthesize and transfer any DNA and RNA across organisms, the scope of synthetic biology is expanding to a level where artificial communities of synthetic organisms can be constructed. Here, we describe recent advances in computer-aided design of microbial communities. We argue for a shift from single organism approaches to their various contributions within the community. This approach aligns with synthetic biology strategies and presents exciting possibilities for the design of artificial communities. (Excerpt)

Rothschild, Lynn, et al. Building Synthetic Cells from the Technology Infrastructure to Cellular Entities. ACS Synthetic Biology.. 13/4, 2024. Seventeen scientists across the USA from NASA Ames Research Center to GeorgiaTech scope out a thorough project plan as these historic, mid-decade abilities increasingly invite and enable our second, singular commencement of a new biocreativity going forward.

Despite novel cellular technologies, a functioning cell “from scratch” has yet to be accomplished. The pursuit of this goal alone will yield scientific insights affecting fields as diverse as cell biology, biotechnology, medicine, and astrobiology. Multiple approaches have so far sought to reproduce living system features such as compartmentalization, metabolism, and replication and derived responsiveness to stimuli, directed movement and more. Here, we review these approaches, look ahead at work to be done and a “roadmap” with key milestones to achieve the vision of building cells from molecular parts. (Excerpt)

Durrett, Charles. Cohousing Communities: Designing for High-Functioning Neighborhoods.. New York: Wiley,, 2022. The author is a pioneering architect, author, and advocate of affordable, socially responsible, and sustainable design. He has designed over 50 cohousing communities in North America and consulted on several around the world. He is Principal Architect at The Cohousing Company based in Nevada City, California.

This book describes the consequential role that architecture and a healthy design process can play in the success of neighborhoods, churches, towns, and more. The author draws on hundreds of community-first projects to show readers how to design of a sustainable community where people can participate in a way that reflects their values, improves their social connections, and retain their autonomy and privacy.

, . Ermann, Leonardo and Dima Shepelyansky. Confrontation of capitalism and socialism in Wikipedia networks. arXiv:2408.07606.. arXiv:2408.07606. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica, Argentina and Université de Toulouse, France physicists (search DS & website) distill a distinct theory of a mathematical complexity as an insistent tendency that drives human activities to divide into these generic, polar options.

We introduce the Ising Network Opinion Formation (INOF) model and apply it for the analysis of networks of 6 Wikipedia language editions. In the model, Ising spins are placed at network nodes/articles and the steady-state opinion polarization of spins is determined from the Monte Carlo iterations in which a given spin orientation is determined by in-going links from other spins. The main consideration is done for opinion confrontation between capitalism, imperialism and socialism, communism. We find that the global network opinion favors socialism, communism for all 6 editions. We also present results for opinion competition between Christianity and Islam, and USA Democratic and Republican parties. We argue that the INOF approach can find numerous applications for directed complex networks. (Excerpt)

Ising Models consist of discrete variables that represent magnetic dipole moments of atomic "spins" that can be in one of two states. The spins are arranged in a graph, usually a lattice where the local structure repeats periodically in all directions, allowing each spin to interact with its neighbors.

Li, Shengkai, et al. Memory and Personality in Ideological Polarization: The Politico-physics of Mnemomatter. arXiv:2409.06660.. We record this entry by a global team posted at Princeton University, John Hopkins University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou and the University of Oklahoma as a most specific attempt to date to identify and describe a deeper, common, mathematic source-code which can be rooted in exemplary physical complexities. Such a conception that implies an independent, phenomenal genesis would be a major 21st century advance. A significant benefit would then be to reveal a natural complementarity, coincidence of opposites between the vested positions

We used physical agents with left/right ideologies but fixed personalities to study what drives a dynamic population to polarize. We consider that persons with high levels of memory (mnemomatter) can serve as a physics analogue of spin handedness as a proxy for ideology. Depending on ones disposition, an agent can act as a curmudgeon who never changes, a pushover who accepts change, a contrarian who does the opposite of what is expected, an opportunist who weighs recent events, and a traditionalist who values past events. We develop a field theory which maps such variances into a public landscape. Our intent is to apply of physics-based systems to better understand the ideological instability observed in the world today. (Abstract)

Peng, Daiyin and Xianchun Peng. Application of network pharmacology in synergistic action of Chinese herbal compounds.. Theory in Biosciences.. June, 2024. We note this entry by Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei pharmacists because it spans millennia between original wisdom and 21st century complexity science. In specific regard, the paper reports a unique version of nature’s network anatomy and physiology as a better appreciation of traditional medicine within our worldwise modernity.

Herbal medicines are blended in multi-drug combinations based on medicinal compatibility to treat diseases. However, due inappropriate techniques of Chinese medicine compounding, it is tough to explain how the drugs interact with each other. Cyber pharmacology is a new approach which uses holistic and systematic “network targets” via computer technology, bioinformatics, and multi-disciplines. It can screen the active ingredients of traditional formulations, enhance their effective utility, and elucidate drug action. We review the principles of Chinese medicine, the methods and software of network pharmacology of compounded Chinese medicines by way of a modern integral science to better avail and apply. (Abstract)

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