Assessing the Potential of Intra-specific Biodiversity towards Adaptation of Irrigated and Rain-fed Italian Production Systems to Future Climate

AbstractThe study addresses the biophysical dimension of adaptation. It illustrates and applies a framework to evaluate options for adaptation by identifying cultivars optimally adapted to expected climate conditions, building on existing crops intra-specific biodiversity. The aim is to reduce the vulnerability of current production systems without altering the pattern of current species and cultivation systems.Adaptability is assessed through a three-step approach that involves: 1) evaluation of indicators of expected thermal and hydrological conditions within the specific landscape and production system; 2) determination, for a set of cultivars, of cultivar- specific thermal and hydrological requirements to attain the desirable yield; 3) identification, as options for adaptation, of the cultivars for which expected climate conditions match the climatic requirements. The approach relies on a process-based simulation model of water flow in the soil-plant-atmosphere system for the calculation of hydrological indicators. Thermal indicators are derived by means of phenological models. Empirical functions of cultivars yield response to water availability are used to determine cultivar-specific hydrological requirements, whereas cultivars thermal requirements are estimated through phenological observations.In a future climate case (2021-2050) three case-studies are analyzed: 1) a system dominated by rain-fed crops (olive, winegrapes, durum wheat) in a hilly area of southern Italy; 2) irrigated fruit crops (peach, pear) in the Po Valley; 3) maize and tomato crop in an irrigated plain of southern Italy.Cultivars adapted to the future climate have been identified for rain-fed crops (e.g. 5 olive cvs). For irrigated crops we have evaluated adaptability for optimal and deficit irrigation schedules, accounting for site-specific soils hydrological properties. Options for adaptations have been identified as a combination of cultivars, soils and irrigation schedules (e.g 2 tomato cvs and 3 maize hybrids have been identified as options for adaptation at scarce water availability). Moreover, in the case of fruit crops, accounting for phenological changes highlighted the impact on irrigation water requirements of the interaction between phenology and the intra-annual distribution of precipitation

Prevalence of Chromosomally Integrated Human Herpesvirus 6 in Patients with Human Herpesvirus 6–Central Nervous System Dysfunction

AbstractWe identified 37 hematopoietic cell transplantation recipients with human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) central nervous system dysfunction and tested donor-recipient pairs for chromosomally integrated HHV-6 (ciHHV-6). One patient had ciHHV-6A with possible HHV-6A reactivation and encephalitis. There was no ciHHV-6 enrichment in this group, but larger studies are needed to determine if patients with ciHHV-6 are at increased risk for HHV-6–associated diseases or other complications

NEXOS TRL Report - Work Package 3 - Delivrable 3.1

Evaluate the technological maturity of sensor systems. Associated Task 3.1. Engineering specifications and technological maturity; Leader: IFREMER; Duration: M6-M12 The underwater sensing objectives refined by WP 1 will determine the required performance in precision, deployment duration and pressure of the new sensors and general specifications will be issued. The Technology Readiness Level (TRL) will be evaluated for each of the NeXOS sensor systems, leading to basic engineering specifications so that performance can be demonstrated within the duration of the project. The TRL study will use remote interviews and meetings among the NeXOS consortium (including referenced providers) and related projects (EuroARGO, EMSO/ESONET, JERICO, GROOM, etc). It will be based on common practice for sensor choice and enhancement and will critically review the limits and achievements of existing sensors within the market

Vers des câbles sous-marins « intelligents ». Pourquoi la Nouvelle-Calédonie est-elle concernée ?

This text calls back all the questions asked by the digital connections by submarine cables and the main stakes which emerge in the South Pacific. It develops the challenges put by the cybersecurity questions before opening the perspectives offered by the double use of these maritime connections for purposes of knowledge but also alert, monitoring as security. The text develops then the solutions which these connections authorize under two ways. First is the potential regarding "Smart Cables" authorizing the operational monitoring of long term environmental parameters in depths, as the early warnings relative to natural hazards (earthquakes, tsunamis...). Second, from now on operation, relates on the connection of seafloor and water column cabled submarine observatories authorizing, by shallows or ocean greatest depths, the environmental parameters monitoring but also those of marine specific faunae. The perspectives relative to the New Caledonia situation are then discussed.Ce texte rappelle l’ensemble des questions posées par les connexions numériques par câbles sous-marins et les grands enjeux qui émergent dans le Pacifique Sud. Il développe les défis posés par la cybersécurité avant d’ouvrir les perspectives offertes par l’utilisation double de ces connexions maritimes à des fins de connaissance mais aussi d’alerte, de suivi, de sécurité en mer. Le texte développe alors les solutions que ces connexions autorisent sous deux formes. Celle potentielle en matière de « Smart Cables » autorisant la surveillance opérationnelle de paramètres environnementaux par grands fonds, comme les alertes précoces relatives à des catastrophes naturelles (tremblement de terre, tsunamis…). Celle, désormais opérationnelle, de la connexion d’observatoires sous-marins câblés autorisant, par petits ou grands fonds, les suivis environnementaux mais aussi ceux de faunes spécifiques marines. Les perspectives relatives au cas de la Nouvelle-Calédonie sont alors discutées

FixO3 - Deliverable D5.3: Establishment of technology clusters

Establishment of technology clusters: A number of technology clusters (e.g. ICT, sensors) that include industry & academic partners. The development of clusters of technology companies stimulates innovation. SLR will identify technology companies in different sectors, for example sensor developers, data transmission technologists and biofouling specialists and combine them in a cluster that encourages interaction to address specific technical problems encountered in the deployment of seafloor observatories

The EGIM, a generic instrumental module to equip EMSO observatories

The EGIM aims to set up a number of ocean locations where the same set of core variables, including temperature, conductivity, pressure, dissolved O2, turbidity, ocean currents, and passive acoustics, are measured homogeneously: using identical hardware, the same sensor references, the same qualification methods, the same calibration methods, the same data format and access, and the same maintenance procedures. The EGIM provides all the services required to ensure the best measurement quality and long-term reliability in line with the Best Practices Handbook by FIXO3 and ESONET-EMSO Label, these services being sensor power distribution, time stamping, data storage and backup, protection against the environment and against fouling and bi-directional communication services… The EGIM is flexible and matches all EMSO site and discipline specific requirements. Operating modes, power requirements, mechanical design, embedded software enable the EGIM to adapt to the various EMSO node configurations: mooring line, sea bed station, cabled or non-cabled and surface buoy.  Its compact and its modularity covers an array of deployment scenarios including being able to accommodate new instruments. This will be a key point to the modularity, inter-operability and capacity of the future evolution of the system. Having the EGIM as the sole reference for all nodes is a crucial step towards standardization, increasing global reliability and reducing costs across EMSO

New set of standards for the qualification of instruments towards extreme conditions

The present report aims to address the topic of robustness of instruments and equipment to extreme environmental conditions issue. We are interest to define standard test methods suitable to the specific activities of ENVRI RIs. In this sense, attention need to be devoted not only to commercial instruments, but also to technical solutions often adopted to adapt commercial and/or custom instruments to the extreme environmental conditions in which they will be deployed and will operate. In this report, for our scopes, the concept of extreme environment/conditions is always intended in a very broad sense. First two chapters are mainly devoted to provide a brief but exhaustive introduction about the concept of standards and actual landscape of international as well as national organizations, normative panorama and ongoing tendency arising from rapid technological transformation and global economy. We focus on technical standards, from definitions until description of the whole tailoring process needed to be implemented to carry on in a correct way standard test methods for ruggedness. About this process, Chapter 3 is devoted to describe the typical life cycle of instrumentation operated by RIs of different domains. Based on an analysis of technical standards available for robustness (chapter 4), four standards have been identified to provide necessary information and standard procedures for scope of ENVRI RIs. They are MIL-STD-810G, NF-X 10-812, IEC 60068 and IEC 60259 (IP code). These standards, briefly described in Chapter 4, are considering different environmental parameters and induced effects, providing for all of part of them standard test methods. They group test methods into categories, and, when necessary, include guidelines and suggestions on how to fix or control other environmental parameters affecting the results. For the scope of this Report, categories provided by selected standards have been revisited considering usual environmental conditions in which ENVRI RIs operate, determining a comprehensive list of 24 categories (environmental condition in which we are interested) spanning from cold to low pressure/altitude, from icing/freezing rain to immersion/temperature shock, from corrosion to sand and dust. Categories provided by single standards have been, sometimes merged into a broader category, when necessary retaining only some of proposed test methods. New categories and groups of test methods have been created with the scope to be more compact and suitable for ENVRI RIs and serve more than one environmental domain (Chapter 5). In addition to that, we provide recommendations, as well as illustrate an alternative approach for the most classical and expected harsh environment, polar regions (Chapter 7), and we also illustrate (Chapter 6) how resources and facilities for testing robustness and qualify instruments/systems are not only provided by the private sector, but also inside the ENVRI RIs community, sometimes also supported by EU. Finally, in chapter 8, the issue of implementing a dedicated service is addressed through a sustainable approach based on several steps

Technological choices for dense networks of small sensors

Small, generally low-cost sensors, that are deployed in unsupervised networks (or remote locations such as the ocean) are becoming more and more important across RIs and across domain. Distributed infrastructures require efficient data transmission through a more strict effort on standards for sensor registration, sensor web enablement, sensor-embedded treatment capacities. Network-enabled sensors offer a strong potential. This deliverable will present ongoing initiatives and proves the maturity and security of the smart sensor techniques applied at large scale