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  • 1
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: The Midwestern US is dominated by corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) production, and the carbon dynamics of this region are dominated by these production systems. An accurate regional estimate of gross primary production (GPP) is imperative and requires upscaling approaches. The aim of this study was to upscale corn and soybean GPP (referred to as GPPcalc) in four counties in Central Iowa in the 2016 growing season (DOY 145–269). Eight eddy-covariance (EC) stations recorded carbon dioxide fluxes of corn (n = 4) and soybean (n = 4), and net ecosystem production (NEP) was partitioned into GPP and ecosystem respiration (RE). Additional field-measured NDVI was used to calculate radiation use efficiency (RUEmax). GPPcalc was calculated using 16 MODIS satellite images, ground-based RUEmax and meteorological data, and improved land use maps. Seasonal NEP, GPP, and RE ( x ¯ ± SE) were 678 ± 63, 1483 ± 100, and −805 ± 40 g C m−2 for corn, and 263 ± 40, 811 ± 53, and −548 ± 14 g C m−2 for soybean, respectively. Field-measured NDVI aligned well with MODIS fPAR (R2 = 0.99), and the calculated RUEmax was 3.24 and 1.90 g C MJ−1 for corn and soybean, respectively. The GPPcalc vs. EC-derived GPP had a RMSE of 2.24 and 2.81 g C m−2 d−1, for corn and soybean, respectively, which is an improvement to the GPPMODIS product (2.44 and 3.30 g C m−2 d−1, respectively). Corn yield, calculated from GPPcalc (12.82 ± 0.65 Mg ha−1), corresponded well to official yield data (13.09 ± 0.09 Mg ha−1), while soybean yield was overestimated (6.73 ± 0.27 vs. 4.03 ± 0.04 Mg ha−1). The approach presented has the potential to increase the accuracy of regional corn and soybean GPP and grain yield estimates by integrating field-based flux estimates with remote sensing reflectance observations and high-resolution land use maps.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
    Published by MDPI
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  • 2
    Publication Date: 2021-01-25
    Description: Here, we present the first ultraviolet (UV) camera measurements of sulphur dioxide (SO2) flux from Yasur volcano, Vanuatu, for the period 6–9 July 2018. These data yield the first direct gas-measurement-derived calculations of explosion gas masses at Yasur. Yasur typically exhibits persistent passive gas release interspersed with frequent Strombolian explosions. We used compact forms of the “PiCam” Raspberry Pi UV camera system powered through solar panels to collect images. Our daily median SO2 fluxes ranged from 4 to 5.1 kg s−1 , with a measurement uncertainty of −12.2% to +14.7%, including errors from the gas cell calibration drift, uncertainties in plume direction and distance, and errors from the plume velocity. This work highlights the use of particle image velocimetry (PIV) for plume velocity determination, which was preferred over the typically used cross-correlation and optical flow methods because of the ability to function over a variety of plume conditions. We calculated SO2 masses for Strombolian explosions ranging 8–81 kg (mean of 32 kg), which to our knowledge is the first budget of explosive gas masses from this target. Through the use of a simple statistical measure using the moving minimum, we estimated that passive degassing is the dominant mode of gas emission at Yasur, supplying an average of ~69% of the total gas released. Our work further highlights the utility of UV camera measurements in volcanology, and particularly the benefit of the multiple camera approach in error characterisation. This work also adds to our inventory of gas-based data, which can be used to characterise the spectrum of Strombolian activity across the globe
    Description: Published
    Description: 2703
    Description: 6V. Pericolosità vulcanica e contributi alla stima del rischio
    Description: 6SR VULCANI – Servizi e ricerca per la società
    Description: JCR Journal
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
    Type: article
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  • 3
    Publication Date: 2015-05-15
    Description: The connection problem for orthogonal polynomials is, given a polynomial expressed in the basis of one set of orthogonal polynomials, computing the coefficients with respect to a different set of orthogonal polynomials. Expansions in terms of orthogonal polynomials are very common in many applications. While the connection problem may be solved by directly computing the change–of–basis matrix, this approach is computationally expensive. A recent approach to solving the connection problem involves the use of the spectral connection matrix, which is a matrix whose eigenvector matrix is the desired change–of–basis matrix. In Bella and Reis (2014), it is shown that for the connection problem between any two different classical real orthogonal polynomials of the Hermite, Laguerre, and Gegenbauer families, the related spectral connection matrix has quasiseparable structure. This result is limited to the case where both the source and target families are one of the Hermite, Laguerre, or Gegenbauer families, which are each defined by at most a single parameter. In particular, this excludes the large and common class of Jacobi polynomials, defined by two parameters, both as a source and as a target family. In this paper, we continue the study of the spectral connection matrix for connections between real orthogonal polynomial families. In particular, for the connection problem between any two families of the Hermite, Laguerre, or Jacobi type (including Chebyshev, Legendre, and Gegenbauer), we prove that the spectral connection matrix has quasiseparable structure. In addition, our results also show the quasiseparable structure of the spectral connection matrix from the Bessel polynomials, which are orthogonal on the unit circle, to any of the Hermite, Laguerre, and Jacobi types. Additionally, the generators of the spectral connection matrix are provided explicitly for each of these cases, allowing a fast algorithm to be implemented following that in Bella and Reis (2014).
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-7390
    Topics: Mathematics
    Published by MDPI
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  • 4
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Limited progress in nutrition policy action is often blamed on the close relationships the food industry has with health policy decision-makers. This analysis sought to examine this belief through the analysis of health ministers’ diaries. Entries were downloaded from health ministers’ diaries from two states in Australia from January 2013 to June 2018. Entries were coded according to which interest group met with the minister or whether general parliamentary business was undertaken. Coding was also undertaken for any meeting topics related to nutrition policy. Analysis of health ministers’ diaries found that the food industry has limited documented interaction with the two state health ministers in Australia. Instead, medical associations, private hospitals and health services, and sporting associations (rugby league associations) had the most interactions with health ministers. Poor representation was seen on nutrition issues, and there was an apparent lack of nutrition advocates interacting with the health ministers. There are opportunities for nutrition advocates to increase their level of interaction with state health ministers. This could include building alliances with medical associations, as they are in a powerful position, to advocate directly to health ministers. Health ministers’ diaries can provide valuable insights into who is meeting officially with ministers. However, there are also limitations with the dataset.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
    Published by MDPI
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  • 5
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Traditional ways of validating satellite-derived sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface salinity (SSS) products by comparing with buoy measurements, do not allow for evaluating the impact of mesoscale-to-submesoscale variability. We present the validation of remotely sensed SST and SSS data against the unmanned surface vehicle (USV)—called Saildrone—measurements from the 60 day 2018 Baja California campaign. More specifically, biases and root mean square differences (RMSDs) were calculated between USV-derived SST and SSS values, and six satellite-derived SST (MUR, OSTIA, CMC, K10, REMSS, and DMI) and three SSS (JPLSMAP, RSS40, RSS70) products. Biases between the USV SST and OSTIA/CMC/DMI were approximately zero, while MUR showed a bias of 0.3 °C. The OSTIA showed the smallest RMSD of 0.39 °C, while DMI had the largest RMSD of 0.5 °C. An RMSD of 0.4 °C between Saildrone SST and the satellite-derived products could be explained by the diurnal and sub-daily variability in USV SST, which currently cannot be resolved by remote sensing measurements. SSS showed fresh biases of 0.1 PSU for JPLSMAP and 0.2 PSU and 0.3 PSU for RMSS40 and RSS70 respectively. SST and SSS showed peaks in coherence at 100 km, most likely associated with the variability of the California Current System.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
    Published by MDPI
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  • 6
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: In this study, AERONET (Aerosol Robotic Network) and EARLINET (European Aerosol Research Lidar Network) data from 17 collocated lidar and sun photometer stations were used to characterize the optical properties of aerosol and their types for the 2008–2018 period in various regions of Europe. The analysis was done on six cluster domains defined using circulation types around each station and their common circulation features. As concluded from the lidar photometer measurements, the typical aerosol particles observed during 2008–2018 over Europe were medium-sized, medium absorbing particles with low spectral dependence. The highest mean values for the lidar ratio at 532 nm were recorded over Northeastern Europe and were associated with Smoke particles, while the lowest mean values for the Angstrom exponent were identified over the Southwest cluster and were associated with Dust and Marine particles. Smoke (37%) and Continental (25%) aerosol types were the predominant aerosol types in Europe, followed by Continental Polluted (17%), Dust (10%), and Marine/Cloud (10%) types. The seasonal variability was insignificant at the continental scale, showing a small increase in the percentage of Smoke during spring and a small increase of Dust during autumn. The aerosol optical depth (AOD) slightly decreased with time, while the Angstrom exponent oscillated between “hot and smoky” years (2011–2015) on the one hand and “dusty” years (2008–2010) and “wet” years (2017–2018) on the other hand. The high variability from year to year showed that aerosol transport in the troposphere became more and more important in the overall balance of the columnar aerosol load.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4433
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by MDPI
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  • 7
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Alternative food networks (AFNs) have emerged to improve both environmental and socio-economic aspects of food provisioning, including the living and working conditions of farmers. Their objectives are supposed to be mediated through the shortening of chains and/or the implication of alternative value chain actors (VCAs). Through the application of a social life cycle assessment methodological proposal on two products from three Belgian AFNs, we first verify how the AFNs meet sustainability promises. Second, we investigate how such social sustainability of the assessed products is influenced by the differentiated configurations of chain governance in the AFNs. Such a discussion of root causes of social sustainability performances in product chains have been investigated very little as of yet. Our results show that AFN perform well in some aspects (consumer aspects, work satisfaction, social ties between VCAs), but in some others, AFN chains use similar mechanisms as the ones used by mainstream chains (unbalanced market power, unfair prices, and low commitment between VCAs), with potentially detrimental effects on profitability and employment conditions for VCAs located upstream, i.e., farms. Our framework is useful to highlight social hotspots in product chains, and to discuss these across the differences in the configurations of the chain layout and—in the end—chain governance.
    Electronic ISSN: 2079-9276
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
    Published by MDPI
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  • 8
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: Pine pitch canker (PPC), caused by the pathogenic fungus Fusarium circinatum (Nirenberg and O’ Donnell), is a serious threat to pine forests globally. The recent introduction of the pathogen to Southern Europe and its spread in Mediterranean region is alarming considering the immense ecological and economic importance of pines in the region. Pines in forests and nurseries can be infected, resulting in severe growth losses and mortality. The pathogen is known to spread in plants for planting and in seeds, and results from recent studies have indicated that F. circinatum may also spread through phoretic associations with certain insects. With this review, we aim to expand the current understanding of the risk of insect-mediated spread of PPC in different parts of Europe. Through the joint action of a multinational researcher team, we collate the existing information about the insect species spectrum in different biogeographic conditions and scrutinize the potential of these insects to transmit F. circinatum spores in forests and nurseries. We also discuss the impact of environmental factors and forest management in this context. We present evidence for the existence of a high diversity of insects with potential to weaken pines and disseminate PPC in Europe, including several common beetle species. In many parts of Europe, temperatures are projected to rise, which may promote the activity of several insect species, supporting multivoltinism and thus, further amplifying the risk of insect-mediated dissemination of PPC. Integrated pest management (IPM) solutions that comply with forest management practices need to be developed to reduce this risk. We recommend careful monitoring of insect populations as the basis for successful IPM. Improved understanding of environmental control of the interaction between insects, the pathogen, and host trees is needed in order to support development of bio-rational strategies to safeguard European pine trees and forests against F. circinatum in future.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
    Published by MDPI
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  • 9
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: The topic of social equity in transport planning has been dealt with, in particular, by authors such as Martens (2012) and Martens and Golob (2012) using a social justice based-approach. However, such an approach, whilst valuable and analytically rigorous (based as it is on accessibility modelling), does not consider a wide range of possible other social impacts of transport, as set out in a framework first put forward by Geurs et al. (2009). This paper uses Geurs’ analytical framework to consider two empirical case studies: The National Transport Strategy for Scotland, adopted in January 2016, together with associated national level spending plans; and Sweden’s 2014–2025 National Transport Plan. The paper will first summarise the contents of each document before analysing them in relation to the categories of social impact that Geurs (2009) identifies, and assess how, in relation to each category of impact, various social groups will benefit or disbenefit. A range of projects (planned) to be delivered by the two national strategies is then analysed in relation to the criteria. This analysis shows that the two national strategies/plans are in their distribution of spending, and the projects funded are generally working away from greater social equity in their distributional impacts.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
    Published by MDPI
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  • 10
    Publication Date: 2019
    Description: We consider the different types of rent-seeking practices in emerging oil economies, and discuss how they contribute to social conflict and a local resource curse in the Albertine Graben region of Uganda. The rent-seeking activities have contributed to speculative behavior, competition for limited social services, land grabbing, land scarcity, land fragmentation, food insecurity, corruption, and ethnic polarization. Local people have interpreted the experience of the consequent social impacts as a local resource curse. The impacts have led to social conflicts among the affected communities. Our research used a range of methods, including 40 in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation, and document analysis. We argue there is an urgent need by all stakeholders—including local and central governments, oil companies, local communities, and civil society organizations—to address the challenges before the construction of oil infrastructure. Stakeholders must work hard to create the conditions that are needed to avoid the resource curse; otherwise, Uganda could end up suffering from the Dutch Disease and Nigerian Disease, as has befallen other African countries.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-445X
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
    Published by MDPI
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