Research and training in the Olifants and Limpopo basins of southern Africa

L'article décrit la participation des chercheurs français, détachés à l'Institut international de la gestion des ressources en eau (IWMI) par le ministère français de l'Agriculture, aux travaux concernant les bassins hydrographiques de référence Olifants et Limpopo, entrepris dans le cadre du Programme pour relever les défis « Eau et alimentation ». Les scientifiques français mis à la disposition de l'IWMI ne sont pas seulement investis dans les dimensions économiques, géographiques et agronomiques de ces programmes de recherche et de formation, ils contribuent également à la coordination des différents programmes dans les bassins hydrographiques et à l'amélioration de leur coordination. / This paper describes the contribution of the French researchers seconded to International Water Management Institute (IWMI) by the French Ministry of Agriculture in the Olifants and Limpopo benchmark basins of the Challenge Program on Water and Food. The French researchers made available to IWMI are not only involved in the economic, geographic and agronomic aspects of these projects, but also participate in coordinating and developing synergy between different projects in the basins.GESTION DE L'EAU;RECHERCHE;FORMATION PROFESSIONNELLE;AFRIQUE DU SUD;RESEARCH;TRAINING;WATER MANAGEMENT;SOUTHERN AFRICA

Research and training in the Olifants and Limpopo basins of southern Africa

This paper describes the contribution of the French researchers seconded to International Water Management Institute (IWMI) by the French Ministry of Agriculture in the Olifants and Limpopo benchmark basins of the Challenge Program on Water and Food. The French researchers made available to IWMI are not only involved in the economic, geographic and agronomic aspects of these projects, but also participate in coordinating and developing synergy between different projects in the basins.L'article décrit la participation des chercheurs français, détachés à l'Institut international de la gestion des ressources en eau (IWMI) par le ministère français de l'Agriculture, aux travaux concernant les bassins hydrographiques de référence Olifants et Limpopo, entrepris dans le cadre du Programme pour relever les défis « Eau et alimentation ». Les scientifiques français mis à la disposition de l'IWMI ne sont pas seulement investis dans les dimensions économiques, géographiques et agronomiques de ces programmes de recherche et de formation, ils contribuent également à la coordination des différents programmes dans les bassins hydrographiques et à l'amélioration de leur coordination. / This paper describes the contribution of the French researchers seconded to International Water Management Institute (IWMI) by the French Ministry of Agriculture in the Olifants and Limpopo benchmark basins of the Challenge Program on Water and Food. The French researchers made available to IWMI are not only involved in the economic, geographic and agronomic aspects of these projects, but also participate in coordinating and developing synergy between different projects in the basins

Intercultural competence for students of Spanish: can we teach it? Can we afford not to teach it?

This article considers the role of language learners in the global society and the extent to which interaction between different language communities can be regarded as possible without intercultural competence. It moves on to review the skills and competencies that can be taught to undergraduates in an attempt to enable them to engage more effectively with the target language culture while on their Year Abroad. After discussing the merits of various activities that can be worked on and ways of assessing student performance, it reports on the reactions of students undergoing intercultural training in readiness for their period of residence abroad. As a final measure of student engagement, it explores the kind of projects students feel able to undertake as a result of the training received, while on placement in universities and companies and teaching as assistants in Spain

Pressure Drop Across Finned Cylinders Enclosed in a Jacket

The pressure drop across finned cylinders in a jacket for a range of air speeds from approximately 13 to 230 miles per hour has been investigated. Tests were made to determine the effect on the pressure drop of changes in fin space, fin width, jacket entrance and exit areas, skirt-approach radius, and the use of fillets and a separator plate at the rear of the cylinder. The pressure drop across the cylinder increased as the fin space decreased, the increase being very rapid at fin spaces smaller than approximately 0.20 inch. Fin width had little effect on the pressure drop for the range of widths tested. The pressure drop across the cylinder was nearly halved by increasing the skirt-approach radius from 3/4 inch to 1-1/4 inches, but fillets and a separator plate at the rear of the cylinder had little effect on the pressure drop. The pressure drop across a cylinder with tapered fins was greater than that for a cylinder having rectangular fins with the same effective fin spacing

Quantitative Spectroscopy of Supernovae for Dark Energy Studies

Detailed quantitative spectroscopy of Type Ia supernovae (SNe~Ia) provides crucial information needed to minimize systematic effects in both ongoing SNe Ia observational programs such as the Nearby Supernova Factory, ESSENCE, and the SuperNova Legacy Survey (SNLS) and in proposed JDEM missions such as SNAP, JEDI, and DESTINY. Quantitative spectroscopy is mandatory to quantify and understand the observational strategy of comparing ``like versus like''. It allows us to explore evolutionary effects, from variations in progenitor metallicity to variations in progenitor age, to variations in dust with cosmological epoch. It also allows us to interpret and quantify the effects of asphericity, as well as different amounts of mixing in the thermonuclear explosion.Comment: White paper submitted to the Dark Energy Task Force, 13 pages, 5 figure

Management of the Hydrologic System in Areas Subject to Coal Mining Activities

Publicity given to the detrimental effects of mining activities on the environment has tended to overshadow somewhat the hydrologic opportunities and benfits that could be associated with these activities. For example, many areas disturbed by surface mining have proved to be excellent recharge areas for groundwater aquifers. The degree to which mine sites can be exploited to improve management of the hydrologic system depends on both the local geology and the mining techniques used. The report examines the effects of present mining activities on the associated hydrology system, and identifies specific mining procedures and management techniques which not only minimize negative hydrologic impacts of mining operations, but which also enhance the values of the hydrologic system in terms of existing and potential social uses. Thus, the results of the research contribute to the solution of present and future hydrologic problems (both quanitty and quality) associated with coal mining in the western U.S. Emphasis is placed on sites which are representative of both existing and future coal mining areas. The specific objectives of the study are to: 1. Evaluate the potential for using underground coal mines to: a. Tap previously inaccessible groundwater supplies. b. Reduce the salt load to the Colorado River by decreasing the contact of groundwater with salt-bearing geologic formations. c. Store water in abondoned mines. 2. Consider the potential effects of underground coal mines on water resources. 3. Evaluate the potential of using surface mined areas to collect surface runoffs and thus: a. Reduce the sediment loads to the Colorado River. b. Enhance water storage in the basin. Each of the preceding objectives is addressed and discussed by the report in terms of actual coal mines in central Utah. The study suggests not only ways of reducing negative hydrologic impacts of mining operations, but also operational and management mining techniques which will enhance the social use value of the hydrologic systems, and thus, in fact, create hydrologic opportunities