The relativistic solar particle event of 2005 January 20: origin of delayed particle acceleration

The highest energies of solar energetic nucleons detected in space or through gamma-ray emission in the solar atmosphere are in the GeV range. Where and how the particles are accelerated is still controversial. We search for observational information on the location and nature of the acceleration region(s) by comparing the timing of relativistic protons detected on Earth and radiative signatures in the solar atmosphere during the particularly well-observed 2005 Jan. 20 event. This investigation focuses on the post-impulsive flare phase, where a second peak was observed in the relativistic proton time profile by neutron monitors. This time profile is compared in detail with UV imaging and radio spectrography over a broad frequency band from the low corona to interplanetary space. It is shown that the late relativistic proton release to interplanetary space was accompanied by a distinct new episode of energy release and electron acceleration in the corona traced by the radio emission and by brightenings of UV kernels. These signatures are interpreted in terms of magnetic restructuring in the corona after the coronal mass ejection passage. We attribute the delayed relativistic proton acceleration to magnetic reconnection and possibly to turbulence in large-scale coronal loops. While Type II radio emission was observed in the high corona, no evidence of a temporal relationship with the relativistic proton acceleration was found

Can diaries help improve agricultural production statistics ? Evidence from Uganda

Although good and timely information on agricultural production is critical for policy-decisions, the quality of underlying data is often low and improving data quality could have a high payoff. This paper uses data from a production diary, administered concurrently with a standard household survey in Uganda to analyze the nature and incidence of responses, the magnitude of differences in reported outcomes, and factors that systematically affect these. Despite limited central supervision, diaries elicited a strong response, complemented standard surveys in a number of respects, and were less affected by problems of respondent fatigue than expected. The diary-based estimates of output value consistently exceeded that from the recall-based production survey, in line with reported disposition. Implications for policy and practical administration of surveys are drawn out.Rural Development Knowledge&Information Systems,Crops&Crop Management Systems,Food&Beverage Industry,Scientific Research&Science Parks,Science Education

Making corruption harder: asymmetric information, collusion, and crime

We model criminal investigation as a principal-agent-monitor problem in which the agent can bribe the monitor to destroy evidence. Building on insights from Laffont and Martimort (1997) we study whether the principal can profitably introduce asymmetric information between agent and monitor by randomizing the monitor’s incentives. We show it can be the case, but the optimality of random incentives depends on unobserved pre-existing patterns of private information. We provide a data-driven framework for policy evaluation requiring only unverified reports. A potential local policy change is an improvement if, everything else equal, it is associated with greater reports of crime

Scheduling with partial orders and a causal model

In an ongoing project at Honeywell SRC, we are constructing a prototype scheduling system for a NASA domain using the 'Time Map Manager' (TMM). The TMM representations are flexible enough to permit the representation of precedence constraints, metric constraints between activities, and constraints relative to a variety of references (e.g., Mission Elapsed Time vs. Mission Day). The TMM also supports a simple form of causal reasoning (projection), dynamic database updates, and monitoring specified database properties as changes occur over time. The greatest apparent advantage to using the TMM is the flexibility added to the scheduling process: schedules are constructed by a process of 'iterative refinement,' in which scheduling decisions correspond to constraining an activity either with respect to another activity or with respect to one time line. The schedule becomes more detailed as activities and constraints are added. Undoing a scheduling decision means removing a constraint, not removing an activity from a specified place on the time line. For example, we can move an activity around on the time line by deleting constraints and adding new ones

Benefits of Session Types for software Development

Session types are a formalism used to specify and check the correctness of communication based systems. Within their scope, they can guarantee the absence of communication errors such as deadlock, sending an unexpected message or failing to handle an incoming message. Introduced over two decades ago, they have developed into a significant theme in programming languages. In this paper we examine the beliefs that drive research into this area and make it popular. We look at the claims and motivation behind session types throughout the literature. We identify the hypotheses upon which session types have been designed and implemented, and attempt to clarify and formulate them in a more suitable manner for testing

Investigating the physiological underpinnings of proactive and reactive behavioural types in grey seals (Halichoerus grypus): Trial deployment of a minimally invasive data logger for recording heart rate and heart rate variability in a wild free-ranging breeding pinniped species

Individuals differ non-randomly in their responses to stressors, exhibiting consistent individual differences (CIDs) in behavioural and physiological coping mechanisms commonly referred to as coping styles. Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) are one of the few mammal species in which CIDs in stress responses have been documented in wild populations, though evidence thus far has been purely behavioural. Physiologically, coping styles can be distinguished by differences in the autonomic regulation of cardiac activity, which can be measured using heart rate variability (HRV). The objectives of this study were two-fold. First, to assess the suitability of Polar® RS800CX monitors and H2/H3 sensors for conducting HRV analyses in grey seals. Second, to quantify inter-individual variation, repeatability, and reproductive performance correlates of baseline HRV. Polar® devices were deployed successfully during the 2013 breeding season on female grey seals (N = 15) on the Isle of May, Scotland, and were capable of recording HR patterns that characterise phocid seals at rest on land. However, artefacts were widespread and biased HRV metrics. Filtration and correction protocols were able to counteract the effects of artefacts, but severely limited the amount of data available for analysis. There were significant inter-individual differences in baseline HRV, which could not be explained by factors associated with the breeding season (e.g. percentage mass loss, day of lactation), diurnal rhythms (e.g. time of day), or stressors (e.g. days since capture). These differences in baseline HRV showed consistency across early and late lactation. Individuals appeared to separate into two groups: those with consistently lower or higher baseline HRV, characteristic of proactive and reactive coping styles, respectively. Furthermore, females with lower baseline HRV showed greater maternal transfer efficiency – though there were no associations between baseline HRV and maternal expenditure (i.e. maternal mass loss, kgday–1) or fitness outcomes (i.e. pup mass gain, kgday–1). These findings build upon previous studies on behavioural CIDs in female grey seals by providing the first preliminary evidence for physiological CIDs that are associated with maternal investment. However, due to small sample sizes, further studies are required to determine whether these findings are truly indicative of coping styles. In their current form, the use of Polar® devices requires several caveats and further studies are needed to fully realise their potential. Future research should focus on validation against simultaneously recorded ECGs to improve artefact detection and correction, and modification to minimise the occurrence of artefacts. Despite their limitations, Polar® devices have immense potential as a minimally invasive research tool for conducting HRV analyses in the field

2006 State of the Estuaries Report

The 2006 State of the Estuaries Report includes twelve indicators intended to report on the health and environmental quality of New Hampshire’s estuaries.The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) developed and now implements a Monitoring Plan to track environmental indicators, inform management decisions, and report on environmental progress and status. The Monitoring Plan describes the methods and data for 34 indicators used to determine if the environmental goals and objectives of the Management Plan are being met. For each indicator, the Monitoring Plan defines the monitoring objective, management goal, data quality objectives, data analysis and statistical methods, and data sources. Just as implementation of the Management Plan for New Hampshire’s estuaries involves the collaboration of many organizations and agencies, the NHEP Monitoring Plan relies on data compiled from organizations that are leaders in the management and protection of the state’s estuaries and coastal watershed resources. Every three years, the NHEP prepares a State of the Estuaries report that includes information on the status and trends of a indicators from the coastal watershed and estuaries. The report provides the NHEP, natural resource managers, local officials, conservation organizations, and the public with information on the effects of management decisions and actions. Prior to developing each State of the Estuaries report, the NHEP publishes four technical data reports (“indicator reports”) that illustrate the status and trends of the complete collection of indicators tracked by the NHEP. Each report focuses on a different suite of indicators: Water Quality, Shellfish, Critical Habitats and Species, and Land Use and Development. These reports are available from the NHEP website, www.nhep.unh.edu. The 2006 State of the Estuaries Report communicates the status of 12 out of the 34 environmental indicators tracked by the NHEP. For each of these key indicators it provides the reader with the associated NHEP management goal and an explanation of supporting data. For some of the 12 indicators, additional information from supporting or related indicators is presented to further explain trends or to provide context for the primary indicators. The interpretations of the indicators in this report were peer reviewed by the 15 member NHEP Technical Advisory Committee and other experts in relevant fields, including university professors, researchers, and state and federal environmental managers from a variety of disciplines and perspectives. Therefore, the conclusions of this report represent the current scientific consensus regarding conditions in New Hampshire’s estuaries

State of Our Estuaries 2006

The 2006 State of the Estuaries Report includes twelve indicators intended to report on the health and environmental quality of New Hampshire’s estuaries. The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) developed and now implements a Monitoring Plan to track environmental indicators, inform management decisions, and report on environmental progress and status. The Monitoring Plan describes the methods and data for 34 indicators used to determine if the environmental goals and objectives of the Management Plan are being met. For each indicator, the Monitoring Plan defines the monitoring objective, management goal, data quality objectives, data analysis and statistical methods, and data sources. Just as implementation of the Management Plan for New Hampshire’s estuaries involves the collaboration of many organizations and agencies, the NHEP Monitoring Plan relies on data compiled from organizations that are leaders in the management and protection of the state’s estuaries and coastal watershed resources