Article
Engineering, Aerospace
Huang Huang, Xinru Xie, Liang Tang, Hao Liu, Nailong Liu, Mou Li
Summary: This paper proposes an autonomous grasping method using deep reinforcement learning to collect unknown natural samples from extraterrestrial surfaces. The method achieves high grasp success rate in both simulation and real-world scenarios.
Review
Environmental Sciences
Miquel Canals, Christopher K. Pham, Melanie Bergmann, Lars Gutow, Georg Hanke, Erik van Sebille, Michela Angiolillo, Lene Buhl-Mortensen, Alessando Cau, Christos Ioakeimidis, Ulrike Kammann, Lonny Lundsten, George Papatheodorou, Autun Purser, Anna Sanchez-Vidal, Marcus Schulz, Matteo Vinci, Sanae Chiba, Francois Galgani, Daniel Langenkamper, Tiia Moller, Tim W. Nattkemper, Marta Ruiz, Sanna Suikkanen, Lucy Woodall, Elias Fakiris, Maria Eugenia Molina Jack, Alessandra Giorgetti
Summary: The seafloor, covering 70% of the Earth's surface, is a major sink for marine litter. However, due to its location in the deep sea, it is the least investigated fraction of marine litter. Monitoring frameworks are still being established to address the estimation of seafloor macrolitter.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Jiayi Guan, Guang Chen, Jin Huang, Zhijun Li, Lu Xiong, Jing Hou, Alois Knoll
Summary: Autonomous driving is a promising technology for reducing traffic accidents and improving driving efficiency. In this study, we propose a discrete decision-making strategy based on the DSAC-SF algorithm to enhance driving efficiency and safety on freeways. Experimental results demonstrate that our strategy achieves a high success rate and fast vehicle speed in decision-making tasks, while our DSAC-SF algorithm shows improved training efficiency and stability compared to commonly used discrete reinforcement learning algorithms.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON VEHICULAR TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Pengwei Ren, Huimin Meng, Qijun Xia, Ailin Cui, Zhongzheng Zhu, Mingtao He
Summary: The tribocorrosion behavior of Cu-Ni-Zn alloy in deep sea was investigated using in-situ electrochemical controlled tribocorrosion technology. The results showed that the tribocorrosion rate increased with hydrostatic pressure at a rate of 1.05 x 10-5 mm3.N-1.m-1.MPa-1. Hydrostatic pressure had a significant influence on corrosion and tribocorrosion behaviors. Higher hydrostatic pressure accelerated the cathodic reaction and retarded the anodic dissolution process. The passive film at higher hydrostatic pressure exhibited a larger amount of insoluble Cu(I) species (CuCl and Cu2O). On the other hand, increasing hydrostatic pressure resulted in a decrease in adhesive wear and an aggravation of abrasive and delamination wear. The increment in mechanical wear with hydrostatic pressure was the determining factor for the tribocorrosion of Cu-Ni-Zn alloy in deep sea.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Elisa Bergami, Bjorg Apeland, Rad Sharma, Peter Enderlein, Clara Manno
Summary: The Ocean Plastic Incubator Chamber (OPIC) is a novel equipment designed to monitor plastic degradation in situ at sea, providing new insights into plastic aging and fate in ocean environments.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Marine
Jing Xiao, Jiawang Chen, Zhenwei Tian, Hai Zhu, Chunsheng Wang, Junyi Yang, Qinghua Sheng, Dahai Zhang, Jiasong Fang
Summary: The multi-net visible fidelity zooplankton collector is designed to obtain near-bottom zooplankton with high fidelity. It has been proven effective through multiple experiments and provides an important reference for the collection of near-bottom zooplankton.
JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Wei Wei, Yuan Tian, Lanlan Cai, Yongle Xu, Xilin Xiao, Qiong Wang, Haowen Wang, Chunming Dong, Zongze Shao, Nianzhi Jiao, Rui Zhang
Summary: Studying the stability and activity of viruses and their hosts in the deep-sea environment, it was found that surface viruses may retain long-term infectivity after sinking, potentially influencing deep-sea microbial populations, ecological functions, and biogeochemical cycles through interactions with bacteria.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Si Wang, Wenye Liu, Chip-Hong Chang
Summary: The flourishing of the Internet of Things has led to a resurgence of on-premise computing for data analysis, along with the development of hardware accelerators and open-source AI model compilers to support edge AI applications. However, this paradigm shift in deep learning computations has increased the vulnerability of deep neural networks against adversarial attacks.
IEEE JOURNAL ON EMERGING AND SELECTED TOPICS IN CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Karn N. Watcharasupat, Kenneth Ooi, Bhan Lam, Trevor Wong, Zhen-Ting Ong, Woon-Seng Gan
Summary: The selection of appropriate maskers and gain levels is crucial for the effectiveness of a soundscape augmentation system. Traditional methods rely on expert opinions or time-consuming listening tests. In this study, a deep learning model was used to jointly select the optimal masker and gain level. The proposed system allows for autonomous and real-time soundscape augmentation, continuously adapting to changes in the acoustic environment.
IEEE SIGNAL PROCESSING LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Marine
Zihao Wang, Yaxing Wang, Jinfu Liu, Zhiqiang Hu, Yijun Xu, Gang Shao, Yang Fu
Summary: In this study, a data-driven approach was used to recognize the motion states and control modes of the Qianlong-3 AUV. By addressing the class imbalance problem in the data and enhancing the data features, the Random Forest algorithm was found to be the most suitable classification algorithm, and the Toeplitz Inverse Covariance-Based Clustering algorithm was effective in extracting latent information from the actual data. This study demonstrates the feasibility of relevant algorithms in practical deep-sea applications for state recognition and control mode mining.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Qingsheng Liu, Jinjia Guo, Yuan Lu, Zihao Wei, Shuang Liu, Lulu Wu, Wangquan Ye, Ronger Zheng, Xilin Zhang
Summary: Microscale processes in the ocean are crucial but poorly understood, especially in deep-sea environments. This study presents the development of an in situ observation and detection system for microscopic targets in the deep sea. The system successfully performed microscopic imaging and Raman spectroscopy analysis during a sea trial, demonstrating its feasibility and potential for deep-sea research.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Yuanyuan Qiao, Jiaxin Yin, Wei Wang, Fabio Duarte, Jie Yang, Carlo Ratti
Summary: In the next few years, autonomous technology will be widely used, reducing labor costs, improving safety, saving energy, enabling unmanned tasks, and eliminating human error. Maritime software development is at an early stage, but recent advancements in sensor and communication technology have allowed for the use of autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs). Deep learning methods have brought full autonomy one step closer to reality.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Ruining Cai, Wanying He, Rui Liu, Jing Zhang, Xin Zhang, Chaomin Sun
Summary: This study confirmed the formation of zero-valent sulfur (ZVS) by the deep-sea bacterium Erythrobacter flavus 21-3 using the thiosulfate oxidation pathway determined by TsdA and SoxB. It revealed the importance of this pathway in the sulfur cycle of cold seeps and provided an in situ approach to study the metabolism of deep-sea microorganisms.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jennifer M. Durden, Michael A. Clare, Johanne Vad, Andrew R. Gates
Summary: The assessment of seabed habitat risks from industrial activities is based on resilience and potential for recovery. Increased sedimentation, a common impact of offshore industries, can bury and suffocate benthic organisms. This study examined the impact of sedimentation from offshore drilling on a lamellate demosponge and its subsequent recovery. Hourly time-lapse photographs, backscatter measurements, and current speed data were used to monitor the accumulation and clearance of sediment on the sponge. Partial recovery was observed, likely through a combination of active and passive removal processes. The study highlights the importance of in-situ monitoring and the need for calibration to laboratory conditions.
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Peng Guo, Satish C. Singh, Venkata A. Vaddineni, Ingo Grevemeyer, Erdinc Saygin
Summary: Oceanic crust is formed through a combination of magmatic and tectonic processes, with the formation of the lower crust still under debate. Seismic data from young crust formed at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge reveal alternating layers of high and low velocities, with the uppermost low-velocity layer associated with hydrothermal alteration. The layering supports the intrusion of melt as sills at different depths to form the lower crust, indicating a stable process of lower crustal accretion.
Article
Ecology
Hang Yu, Connor T. Skennerton, Grayson L. Chadwick, Andy O. Leu, Masataka Aoki, Gene W. Tyson, Victoria J. Orphan
Summary: The presence of sulfate significantly stimulates the growth and AOM activity of different ANME-2 lineages, but ANME-2 archaea are unable to respire sulfate.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Andre Luiz de Oliveira, Jessica Mitchell, Peter Girguis, Monika Bright
Summary: The study presents the high-quality draft genome of the giant tubeworm Riftia pachyptila, revealing signs of reductive evolution and evolutionary adaptations to the vent environment and endosymbiosis. The conservation of developmental gene repertoire in the gutless tubeworm and the role of innate immune system in establishing symbiosis are highlighted. The research bridges four decades of physiological research in Riftia and sheds new light on development, whole organism functions, and evolution in the giant tubeworm.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Isabel R. Baker, Bridget E. Conley, Jeffrey A. Gralnick, Peter R. Girguis
Summary: Some bacteria and archaea have evolved the ability to use extracellular electron transfer (EET) as a means of energy metabolism. The MtrCAB system, which transfers electrons from metabolic substrates to electron acceptors outside the cell, has been found in a diverse range of bacteria. These findings highlight the broad relevance of EET to different taxa and biogeochemical cycles in our biosphere and provide a foundation for further research on its evolution and role in Earth's redox landscape.
Article
Ecology
Daan R. Speth, Feiqiao B. Yu, Stephanie A. Connon, Sujung Lim, John S. Magyar, Manet E. Pena-Salinas, Stephen R. Quake, Victoria J. Orphan
Summary: This study characterized the microorganisms in the Auka hydrothermal sediments using environmental metagenomics and analysis of physicochemical data, revealing a highly diverse microbial community. It identified a vent-specific clade that metabolizes sulfur using novel proteins and found a 20% species-level overlap between Auka and Guaymas Basin, indicating long-distance species transfer. The optimal growth temperature prediction suggested the frequent evolution of thermophily. These results offer new perspectives on hydrothermal vent microbiology.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Usha F. Lingappa, Nathaniel T. Stein, Kyle S. Metcalfe, Theodore M. Present, Victoria J. Orphan, John P. Grotzinger, Andrew H. Knoll, Elizabeth J. Trower, Maya L. Gomes, Woodward W. Fischer
Summary: Climate change has led to extreme weather and rising sea levels, posing significant threats to coastal environments. Microbial mats, complex ecosystems, have been affected by sea level rise. Hurricane Irma in 2017 caused damage to an island in the Turks and Caicos Islands, but the microbial communities rapidly recovered and adapted to the changing sea level.
Article
Microbiology
Yunha Hwang, Peter R. Girguis
Summary: This study investigated the population-level genetic diversity of marine microbes and found differences in genetic diversification between different ocean basins, potentially due to variations in nutrient availability and environmental fluctuations.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Jacob P. Beam, Alexander B. Michaud, David T. Johnston, Peter R. Girguis, David Emerson
Summary: Coastal sediments are important sources of dissolved iron (dFe) that contribute to the iron supply in the adjacent open ocean. The sedimentary dFe flux is influenced by a complex interplay of microbial activities, including reduction-oxidation condition, Fe and S cycling, and benthic fauna bio-mixing and bio-irrigation. The study found that bottom water oxygen concentration affects iron dynamics, and bioturbation plays a crucial role in increasing poorly crystalline Fe(III)-oxides within sediments while reducing Fe(II) flux. These results highlight the significance of bioturbation for sedimentary Fe-cycling and demonstrate the complex response to hypoxia involving both animal behavior and microbial response.
ESTUARINE COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Shawn Erin McGlynn, Guy Perkins, Min Sub Sim, Mason Mackey, Thomas J. Deerinck, Andrea Thor, Sebastien Phan, Daniel Ballard, Mark H. Ellisman, Victoria J. Orphan
Summary: Working with methane oxidizing ANME archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria, researchers discovered that their intracytoplasmic membranes (ICMs) resemble the lamellar cristae found in metazoan mitochondria. This suggests a similar functional structure in these microorganisms. Furthermore, similar structures were also found in other bacteria, expanding our knowledge of microbial cell structure in the environment.
Article
Ecology
Jay T. Osvatic, Benedict Yuen, Martin Kunert, Laetitia Wilkins, Bela Hausmann, Peter Girguis, Kennet Lundin, John Taylor, Guillaume Jospin, Jillian M. Petersen
Summary: Chemosynthetic symbioses between bacteria and invertebrates are found worldwide and are important for understanding the evolutionary transitions between shallow and deep waters. The Lucinidae family, with representatives in both shallow and deep seas, has colonized the deep sea independently, allowing for the study of microbial symbionts' role in adaptation. Metagenomic analyses of deep-water lucinid species revealed symbiont switching near deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps, highlighting the importance of symbiont metabolic capabilities in the adaptation to challenging deep-sea habitats.
Correction
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Sunita R. Shah Walter, Ulrike Jaekel, Helena Osterholz, Andrew T. Fisher, Julie A. Huber, Ann Pearson, Thorsten Dittmar, Peter R. Girguis
Article
Microbiology
Rafael Laso-Perez, Fabai Wu, Antoine Cremiere, Daan R. Speth, John S. Magyar, Kehan Zhao, Mart Krupovic, Victoria J. Orphan
Summary: This study characterizes a family of ANME-1 archaea and its virome using metagenomics on hydrothermal samples from the Gulf of California. It reveals the diversity, ecology, and evolution of ANME-1 and uncovers the effect of virus-host dynamics. The study also discovers 16 undescribed virus families exclusively targeting ANME-1 archaea, showing unique structural and replicative signatures.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tori M. Hoehler, Dylan J. Mankel, Peter R. Girguis, Thomas M. McCollom, Nancy Y. Kiang, Bo Barker Jorgensen
Summary: We investigated the connection between biological energy utilization rates and the biomass sustained by this energy utilization at both organism and biosphere levels. By compiling a dataset consisting of over 10,000 measurements of metabolic rates from more than 2,900 species, and quantifying energy utilization rates on a biomass-normalized basis for different components of the biosphere, we found that energy utilization rates vary greatly. The correlation between mass-normalized energy utilization rates and biomass carbon turnover rates suggests global mean turnover rates for terrestrial soil biota, marine water column biota, and marine sediment biota.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Yunha Hwang, Simon Roux, Clement Coclet, Sebastian J. E. Krause, Peter R. Girguis
Summary: Metagenomics and Hi-C proximity-ligation sequencing have revealed that viruses can interact with distantly related microbial hosts in dense microbial communities. The study focused on a biomass dense, deep-sea hydrothermal mat and found evidence of viral interactions with hosts across microbial domains, particularly between known syntrophic partners. This phenomenon was also observed in diverse ecosystems that harbor syntrophic biofilms. The findings suggest that viral entry into non-primary host cells may be common in densely populated ecosystems, impacting syntrophic microbes and enhancing resilience against viruses through CRISPR-mediated inter-population augmentation.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Pieter Candry, Grayson L. Chadwick, Jose Maria Caravajal-Arroyo, Tim Lacoere, Mari-Karoliina Henriikka Winkler, Ramon Ganigue, Victoria J. Orphan, Korneel Rabaey
Summary: This study investigates the spatial organization and growth activity patterns of granular biofilms producing medium-chain carboxylic acids (MCCA) and reveals that key functional guilds are not stratified. The outer layers of the biofilms consist of Olsenella and Oscillospiraceae, while deeper layers contain less active bacteria. The study also suggests that Oscillospiraceae switch from sugars to lactic acid as a substrate and physical processes may contribute to the lenticular biofilm morphology.
Article
Microbiology
Isabel R. Baker, Bridget E. Conley, Jeffrey A. Gralnick, Peter R. Girguis
Summary: The study reveals that genes encoding the EET system MtrCAB are widespread in diverse bacteria, highlighting the ubiquity and potential impact of EET in our biosphere. These genes have been mainly disseminated through horizontal transfer, with changes observed in different lineages indicating adaptations to changing environments.
