Co-design of sectoral climate services based on seasonal prediction information in the Mediterranean

We present in this contribution the varied experiences gathered in the co-design of a sectoral climate services collection, developed in the framework of the MEDSCOPE project, which have in common the application of seasonal predictions for the Mediterranean geographical and climatic region. Although the region is affected by low seasonal predictability limiting the skill of seasonal forecasting systems, which historically has hindered the development of downstream services, the project was originally conceived to exploit windows of opportunity with enhanced skill for developing and evaluating climate services in various sectors with high societal impact in the region: renewable energy, hydrology, and agriculture and forestry. The project also served as the scientific branch of the WMO-led Mediterranean Climate Outlook Forum (MedCOF) that had as objective -among others- partnership strengthening on climate services between providers and users within the Mediterranean region. The diversity of the MEDSCOPE experiences in co-designing shows the wide range of involvement and engagement of users in this process across the Mediterranean region, which benefits from the existing solid and organized MedCOF community of climate services providers and users. A common issue among the services described here -and also among other prototypes developed in the project- was related with the communication of forecasts uncertainty and skill for efficiently informing decision-making in practice. All MEDSCOPE project prototypes make use of an internally developed software package containing process-based methods for synthesising seasonal forecast data, as well as basic and advanced tools for obtaining tailored products. Another challenge assumed by the project refers to the demonstration of the economic, social, and environmental value of predictions provided by these MEDSCOPE prototypes.The work described in this paper has received funding from the MEDSCOPE project co-funded by the European Commission as part of ERA4CS, an ERA-NET initiated by JPI Climate, grant agreement 690462.Peer Reviewed"Article signat per 16 autors/es: Eroteida Sánchez-García, Ernesto Rodríguez-Camino, Valentina Bacciu, Marta Chiarle, José Costa-Saura, Maria Nieves Garrido, Llorenç Lledó, Beatriz Navascués, Roberta Paranunzio, Silvia Terzag, Giulio Bongiovanni, Valentina Mereu, Guido Nigrelli, Monia Santini, Albert Soret, Jostvon Hardenberg"Postprint (published version

Els trets funcionals de les plantes, una eina per entendre i predir la seva distribució

Dissenyar models matemàtics a partir de l'estudi i la quantificació dels trets funcionals de les plantes que ajudin a prevenir i mitigar els efectes del canvi climàtic sobre les espècies i els ecosistemes. Això proposen els autors d'aquest article, que mostren com aquests models permeten obtenir informació precisa sobre el límit de supervivència de les plantes o la seva distribució, en funció de les condicions ambientals que experimenten.Diseñar modelos matemáticos a partir del estudio y cuantificación de los rasgos funcionales de las plantas que ayuden a prevenir y mitigar los efectos del cambio climático sobre las especies y ecosistemas. Esto proponen los autores de este artículo, que muestran cómo permiten obtener información precisa sobre el límite de supervivencia de las plantas o su distribución, según las condiciones ambientales que experimentan.Design of mathematical models based on the study and quantification of the functional traits of plants to help prevent and mitigate the effects of climate change on species and ecosystems. This is what the article's authors propose and reveal how these models allow obtaining precise information on the survival limit of plants and their distribution, depending on the environmental conditions they experiment

Short-Term Environmental Enrichment Rescues Adult Neurogenesis and Memory Deficits in APPSw,Ind Transgenic Mice

Epidemiological studies indicate that intellectual activity prevents or delays the onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Similarly, cognitive stimulation using environmental enrichment (EE), which increases adult neurogenesis and functional integration of newborn neurons into neural circuits of the hippocampus, protects against memory decline in transgenic mouse models of AD, but the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. To study the therapeutic benefits of cognitive stimulation in AD we examined the effects of EE in hippocampal neurogenesis and memory in a transgenic mouse model of AD expressing the human mutant β-amyloid (Aβ) precursor protein (APPSw,Ind). By using molecular markers of new generated neurons (bromodeoxiuridine, NeuN and doublecortin), we found reduced neurogenesis and decreased dendritic length and projections of doublecortin-expressing cells of the dentate gyrus in young APPSw,Ind transgenic mice. Moreover, we detected a lower number of mature neurons (NeuN positive) in the granular cell layer and a reduced volume of the dentate gyrus that could be due to a sustained decrease in the incorporation of new generated neurons. We found that short-term EE for 7 weeks efficiently ameliorates early hippocampal-dependent spatial learning and memory deficits in APPSw,Ind transgenic mice. The cognitive benefits of enrichment in APPSw,Ind transgenic mice were associated with increased number, dendritic length and projections to the CA3 region of the most mature adult newborn neurons. By contrast, Aβ levels and the total number of neurons in the dentate gyrus were unchanged by EE in APPSw,Ind mice. These results suggest that promoting the survival and maturation of adult generated newborn neurons in the hippocampus may contribute to cognitive benefits in AD mouse models

Revista española de pedagogía

Resumen basado en el de la publicaciónSe realiza un cuestionario con el que se analizan las diferencias de género y curso en metas académicas de estudiantes de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria. La metodología consiste en la administración del Cuestionario de Evaluación de Metas Académicas (CEMA, Hayamizu y Weiner, 1991) a una muestra de 2.022 adolescentes de 12 a 16 años. Los resultados indican que las metas académicas varían significativamente según el género y el curso de los estudiantes: las chicas presentan una orientación motivacional hacia metas de aprendizaje y metas de logro significativamente mayor que los chicos, mientras que los chicos obtienen un mayor patrón motivacional hacia metas de refuerzo social; la orientación hacia metas de aprendizaje y metas de logro aumenta a través de los cursos académicos, desde 2 a 4 de ESO y desde 1 a 4 de ESO, respectivamente; contrariamente, la orientación motivacional hacia metas de refuerzo social disminuye con el paso de los años de 1 ESO. a 3 y a 4 de ESO.MadridBiblioteca de Educación del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte; Calle San Agustín, 5 - 3 Planta; 28014 Madrid; Tel. +34917748000; [email protected]

Empirical Models for Spatio-Temporal Live Fuel Moisture Content Estimation in Mixed Mediterranean Vegetation Areas Using Sentinel-2 Indices and Meteorological Data

[EN] Live fuel moisture content (LFMC) is an input factor in fire behavior simulation models highly contributing to fire ignition and propagation. Developing models capable of accurately estimating spatio-temporal changes of LFMC in different forest species is needed for wildfire risk assessment. In this paper, an empirical model based on multivariate linear regression was constructed for the forest cover classified as shrublands in the central part of the Valencian region in the Eastern Mediterranean of Spain in the fire season. A sample of 15 non-monospecific shrubland sites was used to obtain a spatial representation of this type of forest cover in that area. A prediction model was created by combining spectral indices and meteorological variables. This study demonstrates that the Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI) extracted from Sentinel-2 images and meteorological variables (mean surface temperature and mean wind speed) are a promising combination to derive cost-effective LFMC estimation models. The relationships between LFMC and spectral indices for all sites improved after using an additive site-specific index based on satellite information, reaching a R-adj(2) = 0.70, RMSE = 8.13%, and MAE = 6.33% when predicting the average of LFMC weighted by the canopy cover fraction of each species of all shrub species present in each sampling plot.This research was funded by the Direccio General de Prevencio d'Incendis Forestals de la Generalitat Valenciana through contract CNME19/0304/42.Costa-Saura, JM.; Balaguer-Beser, Á.; Ruiz Fernández, LÁ.; Pardo Pascual, JE.; Soriano-Sancho, JL. (2021). Empirical Models for Spatio-Temporal Live Fuel Moisture Content Estimation in Mixed Mediterranean Vegetation Areas Using Sentinel-2 Indices and Meteorological Data. Remote Sensing. 13(18):1-26. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13183726S126131

Tipos sociométricos, categorías conductuales y aptitudes intelectuales en adolescentes

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between sociometric types, behavioral categories, and intellectual abilities in a sample of 1349 (51.7% boys) Spanish adolescents, ranging in age from 12 to 16 years. The students' sociometric nomination was performed by the Programa Socio and academic self-concept was measured by the Primary Mental Abilities Test (PMA; Thurstone, 1938; TEA, 1996). The hypotheses of the study suggest, firstly, that students positively nominated by their peers will present significantly higher scores on different scales of the PMA than students negatively nominated by their peers and, secondly, that intellectual skills will be a predictor variable statistically significant of sociometric types and behavioral categories. Results show that students nominated positively obtained significantly higher scores on the different intellectual abilities that nominees negatively. Intellectual abilities were a significant predictor of sociometric types because with increasing the score on the different intellectual abilities students were more likely to be nominated by their peers positively.El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar la relación entre tipos sociométricos, categorías conductuales y aptitudes intelectuales en una muestra de 1349 (51.7% varones) adolescentes españoles de 12 a 16 años. La identificación sociométrica de los estudiantes se realizó mediante el Programa Socio y para el análisis de las aptitudes intelectuales se administró el Test de Aptitudes Mentales Primarias (PMA; Thurstone, 1938; TEA, 1996). Las hipótesis del estudio plantean, en primer lugar, que los estudiantes nominados positivamente por sus iguales presentarán puntuaciones significativamente superiores en las diferentes escalas del PMA que los estudiantes nominados negativamente por sus compañeros y, en segundo lugar, que las aptitudes intelectuales serán una variable predictora estadísticamente significativa de los tipos sociométricos y categorías conductuales. Los resultados muestran que los estudiantes nominados positivamente obtuvieron puntuaciones significativamente más altas en las diferentes aptitudes intelectuales que los nominados negativamente. Las aptitudes intelectuales resultaron un predictor significativo de los tipos sociométricos, ya que a medida que aumenta la puntuación en las diferentes aptitudes intelectuales los estudiantes presentaron mayor probabilidad de ser nominados positivamente por sus compañeros

Tree seedling vitality improves with functional diversity in a Mediterranean common garden experiment

Reforestation with multiple tree species is a promoted strategy to mitigate global change and to improve forest resistance against natural hazards. Dryland reforestation often fails because seedlings suffer from harsh conditions in degraded areas. Positive species interactions can overcome recruitment drawbacks by ameliorating environmental stress, but there is a strong need to advance functional insights from well-designed experiments. We studied the vitality of 19,712 tree seedlings from 12 species in a Mediterranean common garden experiment (Sardinia). Vitality was assessed as an integrated index of foliage discoloration and defoliation measures, which are in dry areas potential indicators of early plant performance. The experimental design properly replicated all monocultures and a selection of mixed communities with different levels of species richness (SR) and functional diversity (FD). From the second year onwards, a water availability treatment (irrigated versus non-irrigated) was added to the design. In the second year, seedling vitality was strongly determined by species identity and irrigation, but ecological interactions between trees were not relevant. In the third year, however, broad-leaved species were significantly more vigorous in mixed assemblages. Importantly, FD was identified as a seven times stronger predictor compared to SR. This suggests that a certain degree of trait diversification is essential to benefit from facilitative interactions. The positive FD effects were principally mediated by the presence of pines (P. pinea, P. pinaster and P. halepensis) in the neighborhood of broad-leaved trees. The latter had, on average, a 23% greater likelihood to have the highest vitality score in mixture with pines. The creation of a favorable physical and biotic neighborhood by pines is likely caused by their fast juvenile growth and adequate crown light transmission. FD effects on seedling vitality were positive, but contrary to the stress-gradient hypothesis, they were of similar magnitude in both irrigated and non-irrigated blocks. We conclude that local neighborhood facilitation provides essential assistance for broad-leaved trees passing a critical seedling stage in semi-arid regions. This knowledge can contribute to increased success rates in forest rehabilitation in these regions

Fatigue and resilience in Master's and PhD students in the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil: A cross-sectional study.

The aim of this study was to analyze levels of fatigue and resilience of Brazilian graduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic and to determine whether there is an association between fatigue and resilience and sociodemographic and academic factors. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, and it was discovered that the variables associated with higher levels of resilience were age; having children; being retired; receiving income above five minimum wages; having had greater problems in other phases of the research schedule; coming from private universities; being from the north of Brazil; studying the area of Health; and having their research schedule unaffected during the pandemic. On the other hand, lack of resilience was associated with not having children; being less well-off financially; being younger; being a woman; studying in a public university; and having to postpone part of the research during the pandemic. The conclusion of the study indicated the need for graduate programs to design strategies to deal with fatigue and promote resilience in Master's and PhD students