Minimal Mark-Up of multiple choice exams using XML

We describe a minimal XML mark-up for multiple choice exams. In our system, exams may be generated at anytime, by choosing a subset of questions from a pool. Furthermore, the system randomises the order of the choices within each chosen question. Thus a student may sit the exam many times. Our first version of this system has been described elsewhere. In this paper, we discuss the limitations of our first system that led to our current work, and give a description of the new system features, including XML tags for supporting collaborative authoring

Does landscape-scale conservation management enhance the provision of ecosystem services?

Biodiversity conservation approaches are increasingly being implemented at the landscape-scale to support the maintenance of metapopulations and metacommunities. However, the impact of such interventions on the provision of ecosystem services is less well defined. Here we examine the potential impacts of landscape-scale conservation initiatives on ecosystem services, through analysis of five case study areas in England and Wales. The provision of multiple ecosystem services was projected according to current management plans and compared with a baseline scenario. Multicriteria analysis indicated that in most cases landscape-scale approaches lead to an overall increase in service provision. Consistent increases were projected in carbon storage, recreation and aesthetic value, as well as biodiversity value. However, most study areas provided evidence of trade-offs, particularly between provisioning services and other types of service. Results differed markedly between study areas, highlighting the importance of local context. These results suggest that landscape-scale conservation approaches are likely to be effective in increasing ecosystem service provision, but also indicate that associated costs can be significant, particularly in lowland areas

Emplacement of the Little Minch Sill Complex, Sea of Hebrides Basin, NW Scotland

Acknowledgements The work contained in this paper contains work conducted during a PhD study undertaken as part of the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Oil & Gas [grant number RG12649-12] and is fully funded by NERC whose support is gratefully acknowledged. We are also grateful to IHS Markit for provision of, and permission to publish an example from their 2D seismic data volumes and gravity and magnetics database, and to Schlumberger for the donation of Petrel seismic interpretation software licences to Aberdeen University. We acknowledge the UKOilandGasData.com website owned by UK National Data Repository administered by Schlumberger, for access to the seismic data volumes and released UK well database. Stephen Jones and Thomas Phillips are thanked for considered and constructive reviews which helped improved and broaden the appeal of the paper. Stephen Daly is thanked for giving helpful editorial steer and comments on how to improve paper. Funding This work was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (RG12649-12). Dougal Jerram is partly supported by the Research Council of Norway through its Center of Excellence funding scheme, project 223272 (CEED)Peer reviewedPostprin

Development of EM-CCD-based X-ray detector for synchrotron applications

A high speed, low noise camera system for crystallography and X-ray imaging applications is developed and successfully demonstrated. By coupling an electron-multiplying (EM)-CCD to a 3:1 fibre-optic taper and a CsI(Tl) scintillator, it was possible to detect hard X-rays. This novel approach to hard X-ray imaging takes advantage of sub-electron equivalent readout noise performance at high pixel readout frequencies of EM-CCD detectors with the increase in the imaging area that is offered through the use of a fibre-optic taper. Compared with the industry state of the art, based on CCD camera systems, a high frame rate for a full-frame readout (50 ms) and a lower readout noise (<1 electron root mean square) across a range of X-ray energies (6–18 keV) were achieved

Three-Dimensional Seismic Imaging of Ancient Submarine Lava Flows : An Example From the Southern Australian Margin

This work comprises a part of the Great Australian Bight Deepwater Marine Program (GABDMP) for funding this project. The GABDMP is a CSIRO research program, sponsored by Chevron Australia the results of which will be made publicly available. 3D seismic data was gratefully provided by TGS. IHS are thanked for access to seismic interpretation software. Spectral decomposition was carried out using Foster-Findlay Associates Geoteric Software. Sverre Planke and Tracy Gregg are thanked for constructive reviews.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Inside the volcano : Three-dimensional magmatic architecture of a buried shield volcano

Acknowledgements: Funding from NERC (Oil and Gas CDT) and BGS is gratefully acknowledged. DAJ and SP are part-funded by the Research Council of Norway Centre of Excellence funding scheme (project No. 223272). TGS is thanked for providing seismic data to the University of Aberdeen. Seismic interpretation was undertaken using Schlumberger Petrel software and gravity modelling using ARK CLS XField software. Thanks go to Steffi Burchardt, Eric Horsman and Christian Eide for constructive reviews which greatly improved the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Electron Multiplying CCDs

Electron multiplying CCD (EMCCD) technology has found important initial applications in low light surveillance and photon starved scientific instrumentation. This paper provides a description of the technology and discusses the attributes of the EMCCD which may make it useful for other detectors, particularly those which are photon starve

Volcanic constraints on the unzipping of Africa from South America: Insights from new geochronological controls along the Angola margin

The breakup of Africa from South America is associated with the emplacement of the Paraná-Etendeka flood basalt province from around 134 Ma and the Tristan da Cunha plume. Yet many additional volcanic events occur that are younger than the main pulse of the Paraná-Etendeka and straddle the rift to drift phases of the main breakup. This contribution reports on new geochronological constraints from the Angolan part of the African Margin. Three coastal and one inland section have been sampled stretching across some 400 Km, with 39Ar/40Ar, U-Pb and Palaeontology used to provide age constraints. Ages from the new data range from ~100 to 81 Ma, with three main events (cr. 100, 91 and 82-81 Ma). Volcanic events are occurring within the Early to Late Cretaceous, along this part of the margin with a general younging towards Namibia. With the constraints of additional age information both onshore and offshore Angola, a clear younging trend at the early stages of rift to drift is recorded in the volcanic events that unzip from North to South. Similar age volcanic events are reported from the Brazilian side of the conjugate margin, and highlight the need to fully incorporate these relatively low volume volcanic pulses into the plate tectonic breakup models of the South Atlantic Margin

Combining thermal imaging with photogrammetry of an active volcano using UAV : an example from Stromboli, Italy

The authors would like to thank the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia – Sezione di Catania (INGV‐CT) for granting permission to conduct the UAV surveys over the Stromboli volcano. This work was supported by the School for Early Career Researchers at the University of Aberdeen, UK. Dougal Jerram is partly funded through a Norwegian Research Council Centres of Excellence project (project number 223272, CEED). The team would like to thank Angelo Cristaudo for logistical help during the fieldwork efforts on Stromboli.Peer reviewedPostprin

Compact CMOS camera demonstrator (C3D) for Ukube-1

The Open University, in collaboration with e2v technologies and XCAM Ltd, have been selected to fly an EO (Earth Observation) technology demonstrator and in-orbit radiation damage characterisation instrument on board the UK Space Agency's UKube-1 pilot Cubesat programme. Cubesat payloads offer a unique opportunity to rapidly build and fly space hardware for minimal cost, providing easy access to the space environment. Based around the e2v 1.3 MPixel 0.18 micron process eye-on-Si CMOS devices, the instrument consists of a radiation characterisation imager as well as a narrow field imager (NFI) and a wide field imager (WFI). The narrow and wide field imagers are expected to achieve resolutions of 25 m and 350 m respectively from a 650 km orbit, providing sufficient swathe width to view the southern UK with the WFI and London with the NFI. The radiation characterisation experiment has been designed to verify and reinforce ground based testing that has been conducted on the e2v eye-on-Si family of devices and includes TEC temperature control circuitry as well as RADFET in-orbit dosimetry. Of particular interest are SEU and SEL effects. The novel instrument design allows for a wide range of capabilities within highly constrained mass, power and space budgets providing a model for future use on similarly constrained missions, such as planetary rovers. Scheduled for launch in December 2011, this 1 year low cost programme should not only provide valuable data and outreach opportunities but also help to prove flight heritage for future missions