Clear-Sky Albedo Measured at Seven Rangland Sites in Southwest Idaho

As a component of the energy budget, albedo is used in the calculation of evapotranspiration in many natural resource and hydrologic models. There are few measurements of albedo over sagebrush-dominated rangelands, so albedo was measured at seven sites on the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed in southwest Idaho during 1989–1993. For all sites, the average albedo measured during midday under clear skies was 0.14 during the growing season. Albedo varied from a low of 0.11 during June at the Mountain big sagebrush site to a high of 0.17 at the low-elevation Wyoming big sagebrush site. Albedo varied little between about 2 h after sunrise and 2 h before sunset

Passages Across the Plateau

This presentation is intended to illustrate and illuminate how ArcGIS can be used to visualize the connections between protohistoric and historic spatial stories in the Inland Northwest around the Camas Prairie and Palouse regions of Idaho and Washington. The project’s broader goals are as follows: visualize significant indigenous regions of subsistence and residence in the late pre-historic and protohistoric period, uncover spatial connections among them, and show how European and European-American road and survey work interacted with those people and sites. It pays particular attention to the work and surveys associated with the construction of the Fort Walla Walla to Fort Benton wagon road (the so-called Mullan Road). A key story and analytical ambition of the project was to discover the way in which Native Americans shaped European-American encounters and routes across the Bitterroot, Coeur D’Alene, Saint Joe, Beaverhead, and Centennial ranges in modern northeastern Washington and Idaho during the 1850s. Did Native American informants shape the presentation of their knowledge to direct road construction away from sensitive subsistence sites? Was this especially acute in the areas where there were a diversity of approaches to the high passes? Did the routing of the Mullan Road reflect the shortest/easiest route or some other combination of factors? What natural resources and features interested the European-American newcomers? How did these resources and features also influence road construction and usage by European-Americans? GIS applications more typically associated with anthropology are especially suited to answering these historical questions. By layering historical maps and reconstructions of subsistence areas over modern spatial representations, the story will more effectively reflect the mindsets and concerns of both cartographers, topographical, and construction engineers and their Native American informants. Native American presentations about the difficulty of the routes across the Bitterroot ranges clearly reflected mixed motives both to profit from European-American activity on the route but also to limit interference in existing subsistence and trading networks. Furthermore, European-American road builders were constrained by not only topography but also resources required for travel — especially by pack animal — and proximity to potential mineralogical and agricultural resources. By reconstructing the route, it is possible to more precisely locate historic geographic regions whose toponymy has shifted since the middle of the nineteenth century. Finally, the information needed to answer these questions can also be used to reconstruct the historic geography of the area from traditional names to land use patterns and more in a way that might be engaging to the public and scholars in other disciplines

HARDWARE Astronomy: Repair and Refurbishment of the Small Radio Telescope

A Small Radio Telescope (SRT), originally developed by MIT\u27s Haystack Observatory, was donated to Winona State University by Mayo High School in Rochester, Minnesota. The assembly includes a 2.3 meter dish with mount and motors that allow pointing over the entire sky. The SRT, unfortunately, has been weathered over years of exposure to the elements, and was absent all the electronics necessary for pointing and collecting data. Here we report our efforts to repair, replace, and refurbish the SRT for future undergraduate research. Specifically, the replacement of pointing hardware, the development of a motor control system and graphical user interface (GUI), and future work to implement a software defined radio (SDR) for detection of astronomical signals

Sisäministeriö – kirjanpitoyksikön (kpy 200) tilinpäätös 2015

Sisäministeriö – kirjanpitoyksikön vuoden 2015 tilinpäätös koostuu toimintakertomuksesta, talousarvion toteutumista kuvaavista toteutumalaskelmista, tuottoja ja kuluja kuvaavasta tuotto- ja kululaskelmasta, tilinpäätöspäivän taloudellista asemaa kuvaavasta taseesta ja liitteenä ilmoitettavista tiedoista. Tilinpäätökseen sisältyvä toimintakertomus sisältää johdon katsauksen toimintaan sekä raportoinnin ministeriön toiminnan yhteiskunnallisesta vaikuttavuudesta, kuvauksen toiminnan kehittämisestä, tuotoksista ja laadunhallinnasta sekä henkisten voimavarojen hallinnasta. Toimintakertomus sisältää myös sisäisen valvonnan arviointilausuman.http://www.intermin.fi/fi/ajankohtaista/julkaisu

Identifying biological pathways that underlie primordial short stature using network analysis

Mutations in CUL7, OBSL1 and CCDC8, leading to disordered ubiquitination, cause one of the commonest primordial growth disorders, 3-M syndrome. This condition is associated with i) abnormal p53 function, ii) GH and/or IGF1 resistance, which may relate to failure to recycle signalling molecules, and iii) cellular IGF2 deficiency. However the exact molecular mechanisms that may link these abnormalities generating growth restriction remain undefined. In this study, we have used immunoprecipitation/mass spectrometry and transcriptomic studies to generate a 3-M ‘interactome’, to define key cellular pathways and biological functions associated with growth failure seen in 3-M. We identified 189 proteins which interacted with CUL7, OBSL1 and CCDC8, from which a network including 176 of these proteins was generated. To strengthen the association to 3-M syndrome, these proteins were compared with an inferred network generated from the genes that were differentially expressed in 3-M fibroblasts compared with controls. This resulted in a final 3-M network of 131 proteins, with the most significant biological pathway within the network being mRNA splicing/processing. We have shown using an exogenous insulin receptor (INSR) minigene system that alternative splicing of exon 11 is significantly changed in HEK293 cells with altered expression of CUL7, OBSL1 and CCDC8 and in 3-M fibroblasts. The net result is a reduction in the expression of the mitogenic INSR isoform in 3-M syndrome. From these preliminary data, we hypothesise that disordered ubiquitination could result in aberrant mRNA splicing in 3-M; however, further investigation is required to determine whether this contributes to growth failure

The Dusty Starburst Nucleus of M33

We have thoroughly characterized the ultraviolet to near-infrared (0.15 - 2.2 micron) spectral energy distribution (SED) of the central parsec of the M33 nucleus through new infrared photometry and optical/near-infrared spectroscopy, combined with ultraviolet/optical observations from the literature and the HST archive. The SED shows evidence for a significant level of attenuation, which we model through a Monte Carlo radiative transfer code as a shell of clumpy Milky Way-type dust (tau_V ~ 2 +/- 1). The discovery of Milky Way-type dust (with a strong 2175 A bump) internal to the M33 nucleus is different from previous work which has found SMC-like dust (no bump) near starburst regions. The amount by which dust can be processed may be related to the mass and age of the starburst as well as the extent to which the dust can shield itself. Our starburst models include the effects of this dust and can fit the SED if the nucleus was the site of a moderate (~10^8 L_sun at 10 Myrs) episode of coeval star formation about 70 Myrs ago. This result is quite different from previous studies which resorted to multiple stellar populations (between 2 and 7) attenuated by either no or very little internal dust. The M33 nuclear starburst is remarkably similar to an older version (70 Myr versus 10 Myr) of the ultra-compact starburst in the center of the Milky Way.Comment: 29 pages, 9 embedded figures, ApJ, in pres

Miniature Biometric Sensor Project

Heart rate monitoring (HRM) is a critical need during exploration missions. Unlike the four separate systems used on ISS today, the single HRM system should perform as a diagnostic tool, perform well during exercise or high level activity, and be suitable for use during EVA. Currently available HRM technologies are dependent on uninterrupted contact with the skin and are prone to data drop-out and motion artifact when worn in the spacesuit or during exercise. Here, we seek an alternative to the chest strap and electrode based sensors currently in use on ISS today. This project aims to develop a single, high performance, robust biosensor with focused efforts on improved heart rate data quality collection during high intensity activity such as exercise or EVA

Properties of active galactic star-forming regions probed by imaging spectroscopy with the Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) onboard AKARI

We investigate the structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) and identify the location of possible embedded excitation sources from far-infrared (FIR) line and mid-infrared continuum emission maps. We carried out imaging spectroscopic observations of four giant Galactic star-forming regions with the Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) onboard AKARI. We obtained [OIII] 88 micron and [CII] 158 micron line intensity maps of all the regions: G3.270-0.101, G333.6-0.2, NGC3603, and M17. For G3.270-0.101, we obtained high-spatial-resolution [OIII] 88 micron line-emission maps and a FIR continuum map for the first time, which imply that [OIII] 88 micron emission identifies the excitation sources more clearly than the radio continuum emission. In G333.6-0.2, we found a local [OIII] 88 micron emission peak, which is indicative of an excitation source. This is supported by the 18 micron continuum emission, which is considered to trace the hot dust distribution. For all regions, the [CII] 158 micron emission is distributed widely as suggested by previous observations of star-forming regions. We conclude that [OIII] 88 micron emission traces the excitation sources more accurately than the radio continuum emission, especially where there is a high density and/or column density gradient. The FIR spectroscopy provides a promising means of understanding the nature of star-forming regions.Comment: 14 pages with 15 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Gait and Force Analysis of Provoked Pig Gait on Clean and Fouled Concrete Surfaces

Gait and force analysis have proven to be useful methods in linking claw injuries to surface material conditions. To determine the relationship between claw disorder and floor properties such as friction and surface abrasiveness, the factors controlling gait must be characterised. The effects of fouled concrete floor conditions on the gait of 10 pigs walking in a curve, using kinematics and kinetics to record gait parameters and slip frequency are described and compared with clean conditions. Pigs adapted to fouled floor conditions by reducing their walking speed and stride length, using a higher number of 3-foot support phases and by lowering diagonality. This adaption produced lower vertical forces, a twofold reduction in propulsion and outward stabilisation force and a threefold increase in braking force, without reducing the peak utilised coefficient of friction (UCOF). The UCOF values for both limbs of the curve walking pigs exceeded the recorded dynamic coefficient of friction and the corresponding UCOF values for pigs walking a straight line in fouled floor condition. As UCOF increased and available friction from the fouled floor surface decreased, this resulted in higher forward and backward slip frequency in both limbs for pigs walking in a curve. Pigs provoked to walk in a curve can adapt to fouled floor condition, but if the floor is heavily fouled this adaption is not sufficient to ensure safe walking