Observations on White Grubs Affecting Sugar Cane at the Juba Sugar Project, South-Western Somalia, in the 1980s, and Implications for Their Management

The article reports some observations on white grubs affecting sugarcane at the Juba Sugar Project, in South-Western Somalia, in the 1980s, and the implications for their management.Maqaalku wuxuu ka hadlayaa arrimo la xiriira dixiriyaha cad ee waxyeeleeyo qasabka sonkorta ee mashruuca sonkorta ee Jubba. Baaritaankaas waxaa lagu sameeyey koofur-galbeed ee Soomaaliya sannadka 1980.L'articolo riporta alcune osservazioni su larve bianche che colpiscono la canna da zucchero nell'ambito del Juba Sugar Project, svoltosi nel sud-ovest della Somalia negli anni 1980, e le relative implicazioni per la loro gestione

A chemical survey of exoplanets with ARIEL

Thousands of exoplanets have now been discovered with a huge range of masses, sizes and orbits: from rocky Earth-like planets to large gas giants grazing the surface of their host star. However, the essential nature of these exoplanets remains largely mysterious: there is no known, discernible pattern linking the presence, size, or orbital parameters of a planet to the nature of its parent star. We have little idea whether the chemistry of a planet is linked to its formation environment, or whether the type of host star drives the physics and chemistry of the planet’s birth, and evolution. ARIEL was conceived to observe a large number (~1000) of transiting planets for statistical understanding, including gas giants, Neptunes, super-Earths and Earth-size planets around a range of host star types using transit spectroscopy in the 1.25–7.8 μm spectral range and multiple narrow-band photometry in the optical. ARIEL will focus on warm and hot planets to take advantage of their well-mixed atmospheres which should show minimal condensation and sequestration of high-Z materials compared to their colder Solar System siblings. Said warm and hot atmospheres are expected to be more representative of the planetary bulk composition. Observations of these warm/hot exoplanets, and in particular of their elemental composition (especially C, O, N, S, Si), will allow the understanding of the early stages of planetary and atmospheric formation during the nebular phase and the following few million years. ARIEL will thus provide a representative picture of the chemical nature of the exoplanets and relate this directly to the type and chemical environment of the host star. ARIEL is designed as a dedicated survey mission for combined-light spectroscopy, capable of observing a large and well-defined planet sample within its 4-year mission lifetime. Transit, eclipse and phase-curve spectroscopy methods, whereby the signal from the star and planet are differentiated using knowledge of the planetary ephemerides, allow us to measure atmospheric signals from the planet at levels of 10–100 part per million (ppm) relative to the star and, given the bright nature of targets, also allows more sophisticated techniques, such as eclipse mapping, to give a deeper insight into the nature of the atmosphere. These types of observations require a stable payload and satellite platform with broad, instantaneous wavelength coverage to detect many molecular species, probe the thermal structure, identify clouds and monitor the stellar activity. The wavelength range proposed covers all the expected major atmospheric gases from e.g. H2O, CO2, CH4 NH3, HCN, H2S through to the more exotic metallic compounds, such as TiO, VO, and condensed species. Simulations of ARIEL performance in conducting exoplanet surveys have been performed – using conservative estimates of mission performance and a full model of all significant noise sources in the measurement – using a list of potential ARIEL targets that incorporates the latest available exoplanet statistics. The conclusion at the end of the Phase A study, is that ARIEL – in line with the stated mission objectives – will be able to observe about 1000 exoplanets depending on the details of the adopted survey strategy, thus confirming the feasibility of the main science objectives.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Meta-analysis of epigenome-wide association studies in newborns and children show widespread sex differences in blood DNA methylation

Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsBackground: Among children, sex-specific differences in disease prevalence, age of onset, and susceptibility have been observed in health conditions including asthma, immune response, metabolic health, some pediatric and adult cancers, and psychiatric disorders. Epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation may play a role in the sexual differences observed in diseases and other physiological traits. Methods: We performed a meta-analysis of the association of sex and cord blood DNA methylation at over 450,000 CpG sites in 8438 newborns from 17 cohorts participating in the Pregnancy And Childhood Epigenetics (PACE) Consortium. We also examined associations of child sex with DNA methylation in older children ages 5.5–10 years from 8 cohorts (n = 4268). Results: In newborn blood, sex was associated at Bonferroni level significance with differences in DNA methylation at 46,979 autosomal CpG sites (p < 1.3 × 10−7) after adjusting for white blood cell proportions and batch. Most of those sites had lower methylation levels in males than in females. Of the differentially methylated CpG sites identified in newborn blood, 68% (31,727) met look-up level significance (p < 1.1 × 10−6) in older children and had methylation differences in the same direction. Conclusions: This is a large-scale meta-analysis examining sex differences in DNA methylation in newborns and older children. Expanding upon previous studies, we replicated previous findings and identified additional autosomal sites with sex-specific differences in DNA methylation. Differentially methylated sites were enriched in genes involved in cancer, psychiatric disorders, and cardiovascular phenotypes.Peer reviewe

Wales' arts in transition, 1997-2001 : a discourse analysis

During the period 1997-2001, much of the government of Wales devolved to a National Assembly for Wales. As the local political landscape changed, interest groups struggled to position themselves within it. Some sought to define a nation of Wales by reference to the Welsh language and the arts associated with it; others suggested that a distinctive national brand image should be developed. Both positions present challenges to the development of Wales as a modern civic nation. They are interrogated in an analysis of discourses of cultural difference in Wales and their influence upon contemporary cultural policy and practice there.;Wales' arts were also affected by developments in global media during the period in question. The Internet was emerging as a digital channel for promoting and distributing cultural goods to global markets; it had also been conceptualised as a space for sharing (and imagining) cultural beliefs and traditions. In both modes, it offered entrepreneurial opportunities for cultural producers. Two case studies of electronic cultural enterprise are presented. The subjects of both are Wales-based artists who took early advantage of the marketing potential of the Internet to give a platform to minority-interest music. Their experiences suggest that global electronic cultural commerce has a fragmenting effect. There is a greater variety in what is produced; the conditions of its production and consumption encourage either exclusive cliques or, where there are no cliques, insecure and mistrustful relationships among producers.;On the basis of the thesis' findings, an alternative approach to political support for cultural practice in Wales is outlined