Lagrangian measurements of turbulent dissipation over a shallow tidal flat from pulse coherent Acoustic Doppler Profilers

We present high resolution (25 mm spatial, 8 Hz temporal) profiles of velocity measured over a shallow tidal flat using pulse-coherent Acoustic Doppler Profilers mounted on surface drifters. The use of Lagrangian measurements mitigated the problem of resolving velocity ambiguities, a problem which often limits the application of high-resolution pulse-coherent profilers. Turbulent dissipation rates were estimated from second-order structure functions of measured velocity. Drifters were advected towards, and subsequently trapped on, a convergent surface front which marked the edge of a freshwater plume. Measured dissipation rates increased as a drifter deployed within the plume approached the front. A drifter then propagated with and along the front as the fresh plume spread across the tidal flats. Near-surface turbulent dissipation measured at the front roughly matched a theoretical mean-shear-cubed relationship, whereas dissipation measured in the stratified plume behind the front was suppressed. After removal of estimates affected by surface waves, near-bed dissipation matched the velocity cubed relationship, although scatter was substantial. Dissipation rates appeared to be enhanced when the drifter propagated across small subtidal channels

A novel drifter designed for use with a mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler in shallow environments

We present a novel design for a surface drifter, mounted with a pulse-coherent Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) for measuring near-surface (depths 0.18-1 m) flows. During repeated drifter deployments over the tidal flats of Skagit Bay, the mounted ADCP recorded high quality and high resolution profiles of velocity in depths as shallow as 0.4 m. Depth-dependent velocities revealed regions of vertically sheared currents and wave motions not resolved by surface drifters alone. Although the cost of ADCPs is substantial, the drifter bodies were low cost, robust, and of simple construction

Dinuclear platinum(II) sulfide–thiolate complexes [Pt₂(μ-S)(μ-SR)(PPh₃)₄]⁺ containing fluorinated substituents and the identification of a SC₆F₅ π interaction in the crystal structure of [Pt₂(μ-S)(μ-SCH₂C₆F₅)(PPh₃)₄]BPh₄•2C₆H₆

Reactions of the platinum(II) sulfido complex [Pt₂(μ-S)₂(PPh₃)₄] with the alkyl iodides ICH₂CH₂(CF₂)nCF₃ (n = 3, 7) gives good yields of the monoalkylated products [Pt₂(μ-S){μ-SCH₂CH₂(CF₂)nCF₃}(PPh₃)₄]⁺, which were isolated as PF₆⁺or BPH₄⁻ salts, and characterised by ESI mass spectrometry, NMR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The complex [Pt₂(μ-S){μ-SCH₂CH₂(CF₂)nCF₃}(PPh₃)₄]⁺ appears to have normal reactivity for this type of complex, namely reaction with Ph₃PAuCl to give [Pt₂(μ-SAuPPh₃){μ-SCH₂CH₂(CF₂)nCF₃}(PPh₃)₄]₂⁺, and reaction with Me₂SO₄ to give [Pt₂(μ-SMe){μ-SCH₂CH₂(CF₂)nCF₃}(PPh₃)₄]₂⁺. Reaction of [Pt₂(μ-S)₂(PPh₃)₄] with C₆F₅CH₂Br gave [Pt₂(μ-S)(μ-SCH₂C₆F₅)(PPh₃)₄]⁺, isolated as BPh₄⁻ its salt, and characterised by NMR spectroscopy and a single-crystal X-ray structure determination. The C₆F₅ group lies above the {Pt₂S₂} core of the complex as a result of a SC₆F₅ π interaction, in contrast to the published structure of [Pt₂(μ-S)(μ-SCH₂C₆H₅)(PPh₃)₄]PF₆, where the C₆H₅ group projects away from the {Pt₂S₂} core

Struggling to a monumental triumph : Re-assessing the final stages of the smallpox eradication program in India, 1960-1980

The global smallpox program is generally presented as the brainchild of a handful of actors from the WHO headquarters in Geneva and at the agency's regional offices. This article attempts to present a more complex description of the drive to eradicate smallpox. Based on the example of India, a major focus of the campaign, it is argued that historians and public health officials should recognize the varying roles played by a much wider range of participants. Highlighting the significance of both Indian and international field officials, the author shows how bureaucrats and politicians at different levels of administration and society managed to strengthen—yet sometimes weaken—important program components. Centrally dictated strategies developed at WHO offices in Geneva and New Delhi, often in association with Indian federal authorities, were reinterpreted by many actors and sometimes changed beyond recognition

Bis[μ-bis(diphenylphosphino)methane-К²P:P’]bis[(saccharinato-КN)- palladium(I)] dichloromethane solvate

The dimeric palladium(I) saccharinate complex [Pd₂(sac)₂(dppm)₂], has been characterized as its di¬chloro¬methane solvate, i.e. [Pd₂(C₇H₄NO₃S)₂(C₂₅H₂₂P₂)₂]•CH₂Cl₂. The complex features a Pd—Pd bond bridged by two dppm ligands, with the saccharinate ligands N-bonded trans to the Pd—Pd bond