Quantification of turbate microstructures through a subglacial till : dimensions and characteristics

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A new varve thickness record from Allt Bhraic Achaidh Fan, middle Glen Roy, Lochaber:implications for understanding the Loch Lomond Stadial glaciolacustrine varve sedimentation trends

Glen Roy, Lochaber is a key UK site for understanding Late Devensian environmental change, as it contains an annually-resolved glaciolacustrine varve record. This paper develops our understanding of varve sedimentation within Glen Roy through the examination of a new varve sequence located in a more proximal position on the Allt Bhraic Achaidh Fan, one of a series of major fans within the valley. This new varve record consists of c. 203 annual layers, much fewer years than at other sites in the Lochaber area probably due to five significant hiatuses within the record. Varve sediment characteristics and thickness are comparable to, but not statistically correlated with, other varve series that were used to construct a consolidated varve record for the area, the Lochaber Master Varve Chronology. Sedimentological characteristics, analysed by thin section micromorphology, suggest that varve thickness changes within the basin are controlled mainly by distance from the valley sides rather than the position of the ice margin during the Loch Lomond Readvance, as previously proposed

Geomorphology and sedimentology of the Caol Lairig valley, Scottish Highlands:evidence for local glacier margin advance and retreat during the Loch Lomond Stadial

A sedimentological investigation of new sections of Loch Lomond Stadial (LLS) age deposits is presented from Caol Lairig valley, located adjacent to Glen Roy, Lochaber, Scottish Highlands. The ice lobes in Caol Lairig and Glen Roy blocked local fluvial drainage systems forming lakes that cut shorelines, the ‘Parallel Roads of Glen Roy’ (Agassiz, 1840; Jamieson, 1863, 1892). Within Caol Lairig sediment sequences of proximal, distal and deltaic glaciolacustrine sediments and a subglacial till are reported. The till was deposited during ice advance into the valley and the different glaciolacustrine facies formed in the gap between the head of Caol Lairig and the receding ice margin. When the sediments are related to the shoreline and glacial geomorphological evidence, phases of ice advance and ice retreat and the concomitant changes in lake levels are identified. Initially ice retreat in Glen Roy and Caol Lairig was synchronous but after the fall to 325 m the ice in Glen Roy retreated more quickly than in Caol Lairig. Differences in the ice thickness and the lake water depth in Glen Roy and Caol Lairig may have lead to preferential calving of the Glen Roy ice margin hastening ice retreat

Smart Symmtries

The implications of pseudorandom modalities have been far-reaching and pervasive. After years of appropriate research into online algorithms, we confirm the visualization of congestion control, which em- bodies the intuitive principles of machine learning. In order to achieve this goal, we demonstrate that the transistor and Internet QoS are always incompatible

An evaluation of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens Virulence gene system as a potential diagnostic test for Neuroblastoma.

Neuroblastoma is a common pediatric cancer, the prognosis for which is markedly dependent upon the progression of the disease at the time of diagnosis. It has been argued that a mass screening programme for all infants would aid early detection of neuroblastoma and reduce mortality. Neuroblastoma is unusual amongst childhood cancers since the basis for such a test exsists - otherwise asymptomatic patients excrete abnormal amounts of specific phenolic compounds in their urine. The presence of these metabolites at elevated levels is taken as diagnostic of the disease. A number of pilot screening programmes in different parts of the world have shown that a quick, inexpensive and reliable method of screening is needed. One candidate for this is a test based upon the responses of Agrobacterium tumefaciens to compounds with structures similar to those produced as a result of tumour metabolism. This bacterium responds to such phenolic ligands chemotactically and by induction of virulence gene expression. Data presented in this work shows that phenolics secreted by neuroblastoma tumours are incapable of inducing virulence gene expression but are capable of acting as chemoattractants. The role of phosphorylation in VirA/G mediated phenolic chemotaxis is investigated. Evidence is presented that phosphorylation of Vir and G is required for chemotaxis. A novel, highly reproducible and comparible measure bacterial chemotaxis, the chemotactic index is derived and applied

Visualizing tephra deposits and sedimentary processes in the marine environment: The potential of X‐ray microtomography

Localized tephra deposition in marine sequences is the product of many complex primary and secondary depositional processes. These can significantly influence the potential applicability of tephra deposits as isochronous marker horizons and current techniques, used in isolation, may be insufficient to fully unravel these processes. Here we demonstrate the innovative application of X-ray microtomography (µCT) to successfully identify tephra deposits preserved within marine sediments and use these parameters to reconstruct their internal three-dimensional structure. Three-dimensional visualizations and animations of tephra dispersal in the sediment permit a more thorough assessment of postdepositional processes revealing a number of complex microsedimentological features that are not revealed by conventional methods. These features include bioturbation burrows and horizontally discontinuous tephra packages, which have important ramifications for the stratigraphic placement of the isochron in a sedimentary sequence. Our results demonstrate the potential for utilizing rigorous two and three-dimensional microsedimentological analysis of the ichnofabric to enhance and support the use of tephra deposits as isochronous marker horizons and to identify the stratigraphic position that best reflects the primary fallout of ash. The application also provides an exceptional insight into the style and rate of sedimentation processes and permits an assessment of the stratigraphic integrity of a tephra deposit. We discuss the possibility of applying these µCT methods to the identification of cryptotephras within various paleoclimatic sequences and to enhance our understanding of marine sedimentation processes

Confucius computer: a philosophical digital agent for intergenerational philosophical play

Confucianism is commonly defined as “... a system of philosophical, ethical and political thought based on the teachings of Confucius,” which originated through the teachings of Confucius during the sixth-century BCE. It is a way of life or a philosophy of human nature that considers human relationships as the foundation of the society. Confucius teachings had highly influenced the development of several cultures in Asia, making Confucianism an intangible cultural heritage. In this paper, we are re-acquainting users with an intangible heritage that is part of their everyday, by developing a system that permits experiencing Confucius teachings virtually and interactively. The system can measure philosophical intent of the human and generate meaningful philosophical answers. It is also aimed for intergenerational sharing of Confucius heritage through a simple interactive process with the virtual sage making the experience enjoyable and entertaining. Previous research in natural language processing (NLP) mainly focused on the understanding and delivering of human natural language accurately. In this research, we explored how to apply NLP to model the knowledge and teachings of Confucius, through the natural conversation between human and computer. This virtual Confucius, a chat agent that generates outputs based on Confucius teachings, using a series of algorithms and techniques to improve the matching accuracy between user input and computer output, introduces a novel way of interacting with intangible cultures. Our user evaluation results revealed that there is a positive correlation between relevance and enjoyment, finding their experiences interacting with virtual Confucius very encouraging. Adults who participated in experiencing the virtual Confucius together with their children believed that this system has the potential to improve intergenerational interactions through shared play

Dynamic landscape changes in Glen Roy and vicinity, west Highland Scotland, during the Younger Dryas and early Holocene:a synthesis

This paper introduces a special issue devoted to the sequence of events in and around Glen Roy during the Loch Lomond or Younger Dryas Stadial, the short but important cold period dated to between 12,900 and 11,700 years ago, during which glaciers last expanded to occupy the Scottish Highlands, and during the subsequent transition to warmer conditions at the start of the Holocene. The Glen Roy area is internationally famous for the ‘Parallel Roads’, pre-eminent examples of ice-dammed lake shorelines which were formed during the stadial. What makes these shorelines unique, however, is their role as distinctive time markers, allowing the order of formation of landforms and sediments to be construed with unprecedented detail. Varved lake sediments preserved within Glen Roy and nearby Loch Laggan provide a precise timescale – the Lochaber Master Varve Chronology (LMVC) – for establishing the rates and timing of some of the events. This introductory paper first sets the geological context for those new to this topic, with a digest of key advances in understanding made between the nineteenth century and the publication of the LMVC in 2010. It then summarises the evidence and ideas that have emerged from new research investigations reported in this special issue for the first time, and which shine new light on the subject. Two final sections synthesise the new data and consider future prospects for further refinement of the precise sequence and timing of events. A major conclusion to emerge from this new body of work is that the ice-dammed lakes, and the glaciers that impounded them, persisted in the area until around 11,700 to perhaps 11,600 years ago. This conflicts with recently promoted suggestions that the last glaciers in Scotland were already in a state of considerable decline by 12,500 years ago

Gammaretrovirus-mediated correction of SCID-X1 is associated with skewed vector integration site distribution in vivo

We treated 10 children with X-linked SCID (SCID-X1) using gammaretrovirus-mediated gene transfer. Those with sufficient follow-up were found to have recovered substantial immunity in the absence of any serious adverse events up to 5 years after treatment. To determine the influence of vector integration on lymphoid reconstitution, we compared retroviral integration sites (RISs) from peripheral blood CD3(+) T lymphocytes of 5 patients taken between 9 and 30 months after transplantation with transduced CD34(+) progenitor cells derived from 1 further patient and I healthy donor. Integration occurred preferentially in gene regions on either side of transcription start sites, was clustered, and correlated with the expression level in CD34(+) progenitors during transduction. In contrast to those in CD34(+) cells, RISs recovered from engrafted CD3(+)T cells were significantly overrepresented within or near genes encoding proteins with kinase or transferase activity or involved in phosphorus metabolism. Although gross patterns of gene expression were unchanged in transduced cells, the divergence of RIS target frequency between transduced progenitor cells and post-thymic T lymphocytes indicates that vector integration influences cell survival, engraftment, or proliferation