A benchmark case study for seismic event relative location

'Precision seismology' encompasses a set of methods which use differential measurements of time-delays to estimate the relative locations of earthquakes and explosions. Delay-times estimated from signal correlations often allow far more accurate estimates of one event location relative to another than is possible using classical hypocentre determination techniques. Many different algorithms and software implementations have been developed and different assumptions and procedures can often result in significant variability between different relative event location estimates. We present a Ground Truth (GT) dataset of 55 military surface explosions in northern Finland in 2007 that all took place within 300 m of each other. The explosions were recorded with a high signal-to-noise ratio to distances of about 2 degrees, and the exceptional waveform similarity between the signals from the different explosions allows for accurate correlation-based time-delay measurements. With exact coordinates for the explosions, we are able to assess the fidelity of relative location estimates made using any location algorithm or implementation. Applying double-difference calculations using two different 1-D velocity models for the region results in hypocentre-to-hypocentre distances which are too short and it is clear that the wavefield leaving the source region is more complicated than predicted by the models. Using the GT event coordinates, we are able to measure the slowness vectors associated with each outgoing ray from the source region. We demonstrate that, had such corrections been available, a significant improvement in the relative location estimates would have resulted. In practice we would of course need to solve for event hypocentres and slowness corrections simultaneously, and significant work will be needed to upgrade relative location algorithms to accommodate uncertainty in the form of the outgoing wavefield. We present this data set, together with GT coordinates, raw waveforms for all events on six regional stations, and tables of time-delay measurements, as a reference benchmark by which relative location algorithms and software can be evaluated.Peer reviewe

A novel genomic region on chromosome 11 associated with fearfulness in dogs

The complex phenotypic and genetic nature of anxieties hampers progress in unravelling their molecular etiologies. Dogs present extensive natural variation in fear and anxiety behaviour and could advance the understanding of the molecular background of behaviour due to their unique breeding history and genetic architecture. As dogs live as part of human families under constant care and monitoring, information from their behaviour and experiences are easily available. Here we have studied the genetic background of fearfulness in the Great Dane breed. Dogs were scored and categorised into cases and controls based on the results of the validated owner-completed behavioural survey. A genome-wide association study in a cohort of 124 dogs with and without socialisation as a covariate revealed a genome-wide significant locus on chromosome 11. Whole exome sequencing and whole genome sequencing revealed extensive regions of opposite homozygosity in the same locus on chromosome 11 between the cases and controls with interesting neuronal candidate genes such as MAPK9/JNK2, a known hippocampal regulator of anxiety. Further characterisation of the identified locus will pave the way for molecular understanding of fear in dogs and may provide a natural animal model for human anxieties.Peer reviewe

Disk and circumsolar radiances in the presence of ice clouds

The impact of ice clouds on solar disk and circumsolar radiances is investigated using a Monte Carlo radiative transfer model. The monochromatic direct and diffuse radiances are simulated at angles of 0 to 8° from the center of the sun. Input data for the model are derived from measurements conducted during the 2010 Small Particles in Cirrus (SPARTICUS) campaign together with state-of-the-art databases of optical properties of ice crystals and aerosols. For selected cases, the simulated radiances are compared with ground-based radiance measurements obtained by the Sun and Aureole Measurements (SAM) instrument. First, the sensitivity of the radiances to the ice cloud properties and aerosol optical thickness is addressed. The angular dependence of the disk and circumsolar radiances is found to be most sensitive to assumptions about ice crystal roughness (or, more generally, non-ideal features of ice crystals) and size distribution, with ice crystal habit playing a somewhat smaller role. Second, in comparisons with SAM data, the ice cloud optical thickness is adjusted for each case so that the simulated radiances agree closely (i.e., within 3 %) with the measured disk radiances. Circumsolar radiances at angles larger than ≈ 3° are systematically underestimated when assuming smooth ice crystals, whereas the agreement with the measurements is better when rough ice crystals are assumed. Our results suggest that it may well be possible to infer the particle roughness directly from ground-based SAM measurements. In addition, the results show the necessity of correcting the ground-based measurements of direct radiation for the presence of diffuse radiation in the instrument's field of view, in particular in the presence of ice clouds.Peer reviewe

Retrievals of Riming and Snow Density From Vertically Pointing Doppler Radars

Retrievals of ice and snow are made from Ka- and W-band zenith-pointing Doppler radars at Hyytiala, Finland, during the snow experiment component of the Biogenic Aerosols: Effects on Clouds and Climate (2014) field campaign. In a novel optimal estimation retrieval, mean Doppler velocity is exploited to retrieve a density factor parameter, which modulates the mass, shape, terminal velocity, and backscatter cross sections of ice particles. In a case study including aggregate snow and graupel we find that snow rate and ensemble mean ice density can be retrieved to within 50% of in situ measurements at the surface using dual-frequency Doppler radar retrievals. While Doppler measurements are essential to the retrieval of particle density, the dual-frequency ratio provides a strong constraint on particle size. The retrieved density factor is strongly correlated with liquid water path, indicating that riming is the primary process by which the density factor is modulated. Using liquid water path as a proxy for riming, profiles classified as unrimed snow, rimed snow, and graupel exhibit distinct features characteristic of aggregation and riming processes, suggesting the potential to make estimates of process rates from these retrievals. We discuss the potential application of the technique to future satellite missions. Plain Language Summary Ground-based radar measurements of ice clouds and snow are used to estimate the size, number, and density of snowflakes. Doppler velocity measurements of particle fall speeds are used to estimate the mass and shape of the snow particles. The properties of snow estimated using radar compare well against measurements of particles at the surface and estimates of the amount of liquid water in the atmosphere; the presence of liquid water relates to the potential for riming, in which snowflakes increase in density and fall speed by collecting and freezing liquid droplets. More accurate estimates of snow density from ground-based and satellite radars help to improve global estimates of precipitation and snow accumulation and the representation of clouds and snow in weather and climate models.Peer reviewe

Health and behavioral survey of over 8000 Finnish cats

Peer reviewe

Mantle lithosphere transition from the East European Craton to the Variscan Bohemian Massif imaged by shear-wave splitting

We analyse splitting of teleseismic shear waves recorded during the PASSEQ passive experiment (2006–2008) focused on the upper mantle structure across and around the Trans-European Suture Zone (TESZ). Altogether 1009 pairs of the delay times of the slow split shear waves and orientations of the polarized fast shear waves exhibit lateral variations across the array, as well as back-azimuth dependences of measurements at individual stations. Variable components of the splitting parameters can be associated with fabrics of the mantle lithosphere of tectonic units. In comparison with a distinct regionalization of the splitting parameters in the Phanerozoic part of Europe that particularly in the Bohemian Massif (BM) correlate with the large-scale tectonics, variations of anisotropic parameters around the TESZ and in the East European Craton (EEC) are smooth and of a transitional character. No general and abrupt change in the splitting parameters (anisotropic structure) can be related to the Teisseyre–Tornquist Zone (TTZ), marking the edge of the Precambrian province on the surface. Instead, regional variations of anisotropic structure were found along the TESZ/TTZ. The coherence of anisotropic signals evaluated beneath the northern part of the Brunovistulian in the eastern rim of the BM and the pattern continuation to the NE towards the TTZ, support the idea of a common origin of the lithosphere micro-plates, most probably related to Baltica. Smooth changes in polarizations of the core-mantle boundary refracted shear waves (SKS), polarizations, or even a large number of null splits northward of the BM and further across the TESZ towards the EEC indicate less coherent fabrics and a transitional character of structural changes in the mantle beneath the surface trace of the TESZ/TTZ. The narrow and near-vertical TTZ in the crust does not seem to have a steep continuation in the mantle lithosphere. The mantle part of the TESZ, whose crust was formed by an assemblage of suspect terranes adjoining the EEC edge from the southwest, appears in our measurements of anisotropy as a relatively broad transitional zone in between the two lithospheric segments of different ages. We suggest a southwestward continuation of the Precambrian mantle lithosphere beneath the TESZ and the adjacent Phanerozoic part of Europe, probably as far as towards the Bohemian Massif.Peer reviewe

Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies a Novel Canine Glaucoma Locus

Peer reviewe

Social rearing environment influences dog behavioral development

Early life experiences are known to influence behavior later in life. In dogs, environmental influences of early home rearing could be exploited to improve the chances of developing adult behavior most suited to the adult environment. For working dog organizations, such as Guide Dogs, suitable adult behavior is important to ensure that dogs can fulfill their role as guides for people with visual impairment. Here, we test the hypothesis that dogs' home rearing environment will influence behavioral development. To investigate this hypothesis, carers of potential guide dogs (puppy walkers) completed a questionnaire, termed the Puppy Walker Questionnaire (PWQ), about the dog's behavior at 5, 8, and 12 months of age. An additional 11 questions were answered about the home environment at the last assessment. Because no questionnaire existed which measured behavior most relevant to Guide Dogs, questions from an existing questionnaire (Canine Behaviour and Research Questionnaire) were combined with additional questions. Thus, a subsidiary aim of the study was to test the reliability of the PWQ for measuring behavioral development of potential guide dogs. The PWQ, scored on a 100-mm visual analogue scale, grouped into 5 new scales: trainability, distractibility, general anxiety, body sensitivity, and stair anxiety, with 4 Canine Behaviour and Research Questionnaire scales: excitability, separation-related behavior, attachment and attention seeking, and energy level. For each reliable scale, multivariate linear regression identified significant predictors from the home environmental questions. The results suggest that home rearing environment is indeed important for behavioral development: 9 of 11 environmental variables were significant predictors of behavioral scores. Those environmental variables that appeared most important were social in nature. Dogs were scored as higher in energy level, excitability, and distractibility if they had been raised in a home with children, lower on energy level and distractibility the more experience of puppy walking their carer had, and lower on separation-related behavior the more they had been able to play with other dogs. These findings have implications for matching between dogs' early and later home environments. Follow-up of dogs in this study could help to elucidate effects on guiding suitability and matching between dog and guide dog owner

Offspring Hormones Reflect the Maternal Prenatal Social Environment: Potential for Foetal Programming?

Females of many species adaptively program their offspring to predictable environmental conditions, a process that is often mediated by hormones. Laboratory studies have shown, for instance, that social density affects levels of maternal cortisol and testosterone, leading to fitness-relevant changes in offspring physiology and behaviour. However, the effects of social density remain poorly understood in natural populations due to the difficulty of disentangling confounding influences such as climatic variation and food availability. Colonially breeding marine mammals offer a unique opportunity to study maternal effects in response to variable colony densities under similar ecological conditions. We therefore quantified maternal and offspring hormone levels in 84 Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) from two closely neighbouring colonies of contrasting density. Hair samples were used as they integrate hormone levels over several weeks or months and therefore represent in utero conditions during foetal development. We found significantly higher levels of cortisol and testosterone (both P < 0.001) in mothers from the high density colony, reflecting a more stressful and competitive environment. In addition, offspring testosterone showed a significant positive correlation with maternal cortisol (P < 0.05). Although further work is needed to elucidate the potential consequences for offspring fitness, these findings raise the intriguing possibility that adaptive foetal programming might occur in fur seals in response to the maternal social environment. They also lend support to the idea that hormonally mediated maternal effects may depend more strongly on the maternal regulation of androgen rather than cortisol levels

Use of questionnaire-based data to assess dog personality

AbstractThe study of dog personality is of general academic interest and also has applications for the management of both working dogs and pets. However, acquiring direct behavioral assessments of large numbers of animals is both time consuming and logistically difficult. An alternative approach that is becoming increasingly common is the collection of questionnaire-based information directly from dog owners. In this review, we discuss some commonly used questionnaires for dog personality traits and findings that have been published using these tools. We suggest that the use of such questionnaires may contribute to research that is based on estimation of effects from large sample sizes, for example, genomic analyses of dog personality traits