The Network of Ecological Compensation Areas in Switzerland

Since 1993, the Swiss law and Ordinance on Direct Payments for Agriculture (ODP) enables farmers to be compensated for ecological measures. A catalogue lists different possible measures which can be implemented at farm level both to create space for nature and biodiversity and to generate an alternative income for farmers. Measures include the maintenance of e. g. semi-natural structures in the landscape such as high-stem trees, hedges, pastures and meadows which are not intensively used (detailed catalogue: ART 2009). Succeeding a fast increase in the number of these areas, stagnation has been observed (BIODIVERSITYMONITORING 2009). Additionally, it has become evident, that many compensation areas are in unfavourable conditions for biodiversity and their quality, especially species richness, is low. This motivated the extension of the ODP with an additional ordinance which tackles two main points: Ordinance on Regional Promotion of Quality and Networking of Ecological Compensation Areas in Agriculture (OEQ 2001)

Human-triggered earthquakes and their impacts on human security

A comprehensive understanding of earthquake risks in urbanized regions requires an accurate assessment of both urban vulnerabilities and earthquake hazards. Socioeconomic risks associated with human-triggered earthquakes are often misconstrued and receive little scientific, legal, and public attention. However, more than 200 damaging earthquakes, associated with industrialization and urbanization, were documented since the 20th century. This type of geohazard has impacts on human security on a regional and national level. For example, the 1989 Newcastle earthquake caused 13 deaths and US$3.5 billion damage (in 1989). The monetary loss was equivalent to 3.4 percent of Australia’s national income (GDI) or 80 percent of Australia’s GDI per capita growth of the same year. This article provides an overview of global statistics of human-triggered earthquakes. It describes how geomechanical pollution due to large-scale geoengineering activities can advance the clock of earthquakes or trigger new seismic events. Lastly, defense-oriented strategies and tactics are described, including risk mitigation measures such as urban planning adaptations and seismic hazard mapping

Blue Stragglers in Globular Clusters: Observations, Statistics and Physics

This chapter explores how we might use the observed {\em statistics} of blue stragglers in globular clusters to shed light on their formation. This means we will touch on topics also discussed elsewhere in this book, such as the discovery and implications of bimodal radial distributions and the "double sequences" of blue stragglers that have recently been found in some clusters. However, we will focus particularly on the search for a "smoking gun" correlation between the number of blue stragglers in a given globular cluster and a physical cluster parameter that would point towards a particular formation channel. As we shall see, there is little evidence for an intrinsic correlation between blue straggler numbers and stellar collision rates, even in dense cluster cores. On the other hand, there is a clear correlation between blue straggler numbers and the total (core) mass of the cluster. This would seem to point towards a formation channel involving binaries, rather than dynamical encounters. However, the correlation between blue straggler numbers and actual binary numbers - which relies on recently determined empirical binary fractions - is actually weaker than that with core mass. We explain how this surprising result may be reconciled with a binary formation channel if binary fractions depend almost uniquely on core mass. If this is actually the case, it would have significant implications for globular cluster dynamics more generally.Comment: Chapter 13, in Ecology of Blue Straggler Stars, H.M.J. Boffin, G. Carraro & G. Beccari (Eds), Astrophysics and Space Science Library, Springe

Redshift and lateshift from homogeneous and isotropic modified dispersion relations

Observables which would indicate a modified vacuum dispersion relations, possibly caused by quantum gravity effects, are a four momentum dependence of the cosmological redshift and the existence of a so called lateshift effect for massless or very light particles. Existence or non-existence of the later is currently analyzed on the basis of the available observational data from gamma ray bursts and compared to predictions of specific modified dispersion relation models. We consider the most general perturbation of the general relativistic dispersion relation of freely falling particles on homogeneous and isotropic spacetimes and derive the red- and lateshift to first order in the perturbation. Our result generalizes the existing formulae in the literature and we find that there exist modified dispersion relations causing both, one or none of the two effects to first order.Comment: 9 pages, refs added, extended outlook added, matches published versio

TOP 2014: Experimental Summary

A summary of the experimental results of the TOP2014 International Workshop in Cannes, France, is presented. This inspiring conference clearly showed the richness and diversity of top-quark physics research. Results cover a very broad spectrum of analyses involving studies of the strong and electroweak interactions of the top quark, high-precision measurements of intrinsic top-quark properties, developments of new tools in top-quark analyses, observations of new Standard Model processes, the interaction between the top quark and the Higgs boson and sensitive searches for new physics beyond the Standard Model.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, presentation given at 7th International Workshop on Top Quark Physics (TOP 2014), 29 September - 03 October 2014, Cannes, France, to appear in the proceeding