A Hydrologic and Restoration-Feasibility Study of a Carolina Bay in Aiken and Barnwell Counties, South Carolina

2010 S.C. Water Resources Conference - Science and Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Futur

Pyrolyzed thin film carbon

A method of making carbon thin films comprises depositing a catalyst on a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon in contact with the catalyst and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon. A method of controlling a carbon thin film density comprises etching a cavity into a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon into the cavity, and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon while in the cavity to form a carbon thin film. Controlling a carbon thin film density is achieved by changing the volume of the cavity. Methods of making carbon containing patterned structures are also provided. Carbon thin films and carbon containing patterned structures can be used in NEMS, MEMS, liquid chromatography, and sensor devices

Overview of the South Carolina State and River Basin Planning Framework

Economic development, environmental protection, and public health are critical quality-of-life issues that depend on a reliable supply of water. Increased water demand and climate variability (drought) are two major factors that have the potential to limit future water availability in the state of South Carolina. The development of a comprehensive water-resources management plan for the state is vital for ensuring that an adequate and reliable supply of water will be available to sustain all future uses. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) is tasked legislatively with developing water planning and policy initiatives in the state and has initiated a long-term process to update the state water plan, last published in 2004. One of the major recommendations in the 2004 plan was to form River Basin Councils (RBCs) in each of the major river basins in the state for the purpose of water planning. In 2014, SCDNR initiated a multiyear process to develop regional water plans that will serve as the foundation for a new state water plan. A central component of the process was the creation of a Planning Process Advisory Committee (PPAC) for the purpose of developing formal guidelines on the formation of RBCs and the development of river basin plans for the eight designated river basins in the state. The PPAC is composed of a diverse group of stakeholders and includes representation from water utilities, energy utilities, trade organizations, academia, conservation groups, agriculture, and the general public. The work of the PPAC culminated in a report, the South Carolina State Water Planning Framework, which was published in October of 2019. The river basin plans will identify current and future water availability issues and describe a management plan to address these issues to ensure that an adequate and reliable supply of water will be available for future generations. The purpose of this paper is to provide a general overview of the state’s river basin planning process

Solar stormwatch: tracking solar eruptions

The Solar Stormwatch team reviews progress and prospects for this highly effective citizen-science project focused on the Sun

Non-equilibrium dynamics and floral trait interactions shape extant angiosperm diversity.

Why are some traits and trait combinations exceptionally common across the tree of life, whereas others are vanishingly rare? The distribution of trait diversity across a clade at any time depends on the ancestral state of the clade, the rate at which new phenotypes evolve, the differences in speciation and extinction rates across lineages, and whether an equilibrium has been reached. Here we examine the role of transition rates, differential diversification (speciation minus extinction) and non-equilibrium dynamics on the evolutionary history of angiosperms, a clade well known for the abundance of some trait combinations and the rarity of others. Our analysis reveals that three character states (corolla present, bilateral symmetry, reduced stamen number) act synergistically as a key innovation, doubling diversification rates for lineages in which this combination occurs. However, this combination is currently less common than predicted at equilibrium because the individual characters evolve infrequently. Simulations suggest that angiosperms will remain far from the equilibrium frequencies of character states well into the future. Such non-equilibrium dynamics may be common when major innovations evolve rarely, allowing lineages with ancestral forms to persist, and even outnumber those with diversification-enhancing states, for tens of millions of years

Development of Extended Unimpaired Streamflow Records in the Saluda Basin, South Carolina

This paper presents the steps involved and the methodologies employed in the first phase of the South Carolina Surface Water Assessment - development of extended and unimpaired streamflow estimates based on USGS gage data in the Saluda basin. Streamflow data are first adjusted to remove effects of anthropogenic impairments. Adjustments are made for reservoirs, withdrawals, and discharges based on available documentation. Where documentation is insufficient, hindcasting methods are used. The resulting datasets are called unimpaired flows (UIFs). The UIFs are then extended in time from 1925, the starting date of the first continuous stream discharge data available in the basin, through 2013. Candidate reference gages for each short-record gage are selected based on a qualitative assessment. Area ratio and Maintenance of Variance Extension (Hirsch, 1982) methods are applied. Statistical and graphical evaluation of the extension results is followed by composition of extended UIFs

2010 Solar and Space Physics Decadal Survey White Paper: Next Steps in Solar Spectral Irradiance Studies

Understanding the physical causes underlying solar spectral irradiance variations and the impact of these variations on terrestrial climate remain critical compelling challenges. On the solar side, the most fundamental unknown is the role of the “quiet-sun7 ,” a question brought into focus by spectral irradiance observations during the recent deep minimum, which show opposing trends in the infrared and ultraviolet portions of the spectrum (Harder et al. 2009). On the terrestrial side, while it is clear that the Sun played only a small role in late twentieth century warming, the signature of solar cycle variations in climate are now quite well established (Gray et al. 2010). How this coupling occurs is not fully understood, suggesting something incomplete in our understanding of the climate system. We suggest that in the coming decade, through the focused efforts outlined below, we can successfully address both of these scientific challenges and emerge with a new more complete understanding of the Sun and its influence on Earth. The essential ingredients in this effort are poised at the edge of our abilities, challenging but not risky, and take full advantage of current technological capabilities

Гарри Поттер как современный миф

Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), a major modulator of the fibrinolytic system, is an important factor in cardiovascular disease (CVD) susceptibility and severity. PAI-1 is highly heritable, but the few genes associated with it explain only a small portion of its variation. Studies of PAI-1 typically employ linear regression to estimate the effects of genetic variants on PAI-1 levels, but PAI-1 is not normally distributed, even after transformation. Therefore, alternative statistical methods may provide greater power to identify important genetic variants. Additionally, most genetic studies of PAI-1 have been performed on populations of European descent, limiting the generalizability of their results. We analyzed >30,000 variants for association with PAI-1 in a Ghanaian population, using median regression, a non-parametric alternative to linear regression. Three variants associated with median PAI-1, the most significant of which was in the gene arylsulfatase B (ARSB) (p = 1.09 x 10(-7)). We also analyzed the upper quartile of PAI-1, the most clinically relevant part of the distribution, and found 19 SNPs significantly associated in this quartile. Of note an association was found in period circadian clock 3 (PER3). Our results reveal novel associations with median and elevated PAI-1 in an understudied population. The lack of overlap between the two analyses indicates that the genetic effects on PAI-1 are not uniform across its distribution. They also provide evidence of the generalizability of the circadian pathway's effect on PAI-1, as a recent meta-analysis performed in Caucasian populations identified another circadian clock gene (ARNTL)