Spaceborne Infrared Atmospheric Sounder

A report describes the development of the spaceborne infrared atmospheric sounder (SIRAS) - a spectral imaging instrument, suitable for observing the atmosphere of the Earth from a spacecraft, that utilizes four spectrometers to cover the wavelength range of 12 to 15.4 m with a spectral resolution that ranges between 1 part per 900 and 1 part per 1,200 in wavelength. The spectrometers are operated in low orders to minimize filtering requirements. Focal planes receive the dispersed energy and provide a spectrum of the scene. The design of the SIRAS combines advanced, wide-field refractive optics with high-dispersion gratings in a solid-state (no moving parts), diffraction-limited optical system that is the smallest such system that can be constructed for the specified wavelength range and resolution. The primary structure of the SIRAS has dimensions of 10 by 10 by 14 cm and has a mass of only 2.03 k

Entwicklung verschiedenfarbiger Möhrensorten für den Biolandbau

Das abgeschlossene FuE-Projekt kann insgesamt als sehr erfolgreich betrachtet werden. Alle geplanten Projektziele sind im Wesentlichen erreicht worden. Das übergeordnete Projektziel - Pre-Breeding und Etablierung eines Möhrenzüchtungsprogramms für verschiedenfarbige Möhren bei Fa. satimex – ist umgesetzt worden. Projektpartner satimex steht mit Projektabschluss auf sehr breiter Basis ein Zuchtmaterial in allen Farbvarianten der Möhre sowie umfangreiches Datenmaterial als Grundlage einer zukünftigen Züchtung zur Verfügung. Umfangreiche Untersuchungen hinsichtlich des Resistenzverhaltens gegen Alternaria spp., sensorischer Parameter, flüchtiger Inhaltsstoffe sowie agronomischer Merkmale ermöglichten eine detaillierte Beschreibung und Bewertung der entwickelten Zuchtlinien und stellen eine wichtige Entscheidungshilfe für das zukünftige Zuchtprogramm dar. Darüber hinaus wurden aussichtsreiche Zuchtlinien unter Praxisbedingungen in Bio-Betrieben getestet, Daten zu Vermarktungschancen erhoben und eine Lagereignungsprüfung durchgeführt. Es wird eingeschätzt, dass mit dem Projektabschluss ein umfangreiches Zuchtmaterial in allen geplanten Farbklassen zur Verfügung steht. Farb- und Formenvielfalt ist bereits ausreichend realisiert, weiterer Züchtungsbedarf besteht insbesondere bei der äußeren und inneren Wurzelqualität, der Schossfestigkeit und der Resistenz bzw. Toleranz gegen biotische und abiotische Stressfaktoren. Eine wissenschaftliche Anschlussfähigkeit ist durch die extreme genetische Breite und morphologische Variabilität des entwickelten Zuchtmaterials gegeben, welche es für weitere wissenschaftliche Fragestellungen interessant macht. Forschungsansätze werden speziell in drei Richtungen gesehen: i) Verbesserung der Resistenz bei allen roten (Lycopin) Genotypen, ii) Aufklärung des genetischen Hintergrundes der Blühinduktion zur Verbesserung der Schossresistenz und iii) Entwicklung von molekularen Markern für Aromakomponenten der Möhre auf der Basis sensorischer und chemisch analytischer Untersuchungen

Doppler lidar measurements of oriented planar ice crystals falling from supercooled and glaciated layer clouds

The properties of planar ice crystals settling horizontally have been investigated using a vertically-pointing Doppler lidar. Strong specular reflections were observed from their oriented basal facets, identified by comparison with a second lidar pointing 4deg from zenith. Analysis of 17 months of continuous high-resolution observations reveal that these pristine crystals are frequently observed in ice falling from mid-level mixed-phase layer clouds (85% of the time for layers at -15C). Detailed analysis of a case study indicates that the crystals are nucleated and grow rapidly within the supercooled layer, then fall out, forming well-defined layers of specular reflection. From the lidar alone the fraction of oriented crystals cannot be quantified, but polarimetric radar measurements confirmed that a substantial fraction of the crystal population was well oriented. As the crystals fall into subsaturated air, specular reflection is observed to switch off as the crystal faces become rounded and lose their faceted structure. Specular reflection in ice falling from supercooled layers colder than -22C was also observed, but was much less pronounced than at warmer temperatures: we suggest that in cold clouds it is the small droplets in the distribution that freeze into plates and produce specular reflection, whilst larger droplets freeze into complex polycrystals. The lidar Doppler measurements show that typical fall speeds for the oriented crystals are 0.3m/s, with a weak temperature correlation; the corresponding Reynolds number is Re~10, in agreement with light-pillar measurements. Coincident Doppler radar observations show no correlation between the specular enhancement and eddy dissipation rate, indicating that turbulence does not control crystal orientation in these clouds.Comment: revised manuscript for Q. J. Royal Met So

SARS-CoV-2 Transmissibility Within Day Care Centers—Study Protocol of a Prospective Analysis of Outbreaks in Germany

Introduction: Until today, the role of children in the transmission dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 and the development of the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be dynamic and is not finally resolved. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the transmission dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in child day care centers and connected households as well as transmission-related indicators and clinical symptoms among children and adults. Methods and Analysis: COALA (“Corona outbreak-related examinations in day care centers”) is a day care center- and household-based study with a case-ascertained study design. Based on day care centers with at least one reported case of SARS-CoV-2, we include one- to six-year-old children and staff of the affected group in the day care center as well as their respective households. We visit each child's and adult's household. During the home visit we take from each household member a combined mouth and nose swab as well as a saliva sample for analysis of SARS-CoV-2-RNA by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR) and a capillary blood sample for a retrospective assessment of an earlier SARS-CoV-2 infection. Furthermore, information on health status, socio-demographics and COVID-19 protective measures are collected via a short telephone interview in the subsequent days. In the following 12 days, household members (or parents for their children) self-collect the same respiratory samples as described above every 3 days and a stool sample for children once. COVID-19 symptoms are documented daily in a symptom diary. Approximately 35 days after testing the index case, every participant who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during the study is re-visited at home for another capillary blood sample and a standardized interview. The analysis includes secondary attack rates, by age of primary case, both in the day care center and in households, as well as viral shedding dynamics, including the beginning of shedding relative to symptom onset and viral clearance. Discussion: The results contribute to a better understanding of the epidemiological and virological transmission-related indicators of SARS-CoV-2 among young children, as compared to adults and the interplay between day care and households.Peer Reviewe

Abnormal social reward processing in autism as indexed by pupillary responses to happy faces

Background: Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) typically show impaired eye contact during social interactions. From a young age, they look less at faces than typically developing (TD) children and tend to avoid direct gaze. However, the reason for this behavior remains controversial; ASD children might avoid eye contact because they perceive the eyes as aversive or because they do not find social engagement through mutual gaze rewarding. Methods: We monitored pupillary diameter as a measure of autonomic response in children with ASD (n = 20, mean age = 12.4) and TD controls (n = 18, mean age = 13.7) while they looked at faces displaying different emotions. Each face displayed happy, fearful, angry or neutral emotions with the gaze either directed to or averted from the subjects. Results: Overall, children with ASD and TD controls showed similar pupillary responses; however, they differed significantly in their sensitivity to gaze direction for happy faces. Specifically, pupillary diameter increased among TD children when viewing happy faces with direct gaze as compared to those with averted gaze, whereas children with ASD did not show such sensitivity to gaze direction. We found no group differences in fixation that could explain the differential pupillary responses. There was no effect of gaze direction on pupil diameter for negative affect or neutral faces among either the TD or ASD group. Conclusions: We interpret the increased pupillary diameter to happy faces with direct gaze in TD children to reflect the intrinsic reward value of a smiling face looking directly at an individual. The lack of this effect in children with ASD is consistent with the hypothesis that individuals with ASD may have reduced sensitivity to the reward value of social stimuli

Deep Brain Stimulation of Nucleus Accumbens Region in Alcoholism Affects Reward Processing

The influence of bilateral deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the nucleus nucleus (NAcc) on the processing of reward in a gambling paradigm was investigated using H2[15O]-PET (positron emission tomography) in a 38-year-old man treated for severe alcohol addiction. Behavioral data analysis revealed a less risky, more careful choice behavior under active DBS compared to DBS switched off. PET showed win- and loss-related activations in the paracingulate cortex, temporal poles, precuneus and hippocampus under active DBS, brain areas that have been implicated in action monitoring and behavioral control. Except for the temporal pole these activations were not seen when DBS was deactivated. These findings suggest that DBS of the NAcc may act partially by improving behavioral control

The Short Rise and Long Fall of heterodox Economics in germany After the 1970s: Explorations in a Scientific Field of Power and Struggle.

In the context of ongoing criticisms of the lack of pluralism in economics, the present article aims to discuss the development of ‘heterodox’ economics since the 1970s. Following Lakatos’s concept of scientific research programs (srp), and concentrating on the situation in Germany, the article will discuss classifications of economics, and will specify the understanding of diversity in the light of ‘axiomatic variations’ of the economic mainstream. This will form the basis for the subsequent description of the development of heterodoxy in Germany, with special reference to the founding of new universities and the reform movements in the 1970s. It can be shown that the heterodox scene flourished in this period, but that this pluralization remained fragmented and short-lived; by the 1980s at the latest heterodoxy was again on its way to marginalization. The history of heterodoxy in Germany thus presents itself as an unequal ‘battle of the paradigms,’ and can only be told as the story of a failure

The art of making choices : the Feldenkrais method as a choreographic resource

This document contextualises the practice-led Performance as Research (PaR) project 'The Art of Making Choices: The Feldenkrais Method as a Choreographic Resource'. It demonstrates how the included artistic submissions form an organic whole and substantially contribute to knowledge to the emerging trans-disciplinary field of 'Somatic Informed Dance Practice' (Brown 2011). In an organic, fluid way the document interweaves interpretations of The Feldenkrais Method, a leading twentieth century somatic educational practice, with examples of applications and resonances of such applications within my choreographic practice. The document sets out how my research contributes to the field by exemplifying a dialogic relationship between a 'somatic educational practice' and an emerging 'somatic dance practice', revealing how The Feldenkrais Method can provide an empowering and agency-constituting process for dance-makers and performers within somatic-informed contexts. The proposed trans-disciplinary PaR-methodology, draws on non-linear modes of enquiry and knowledge-creation as tools for embodied choreographic questioning. The document discusses how the undertaken research makes explicit a multi-dimensional range of theatrical applications of The Feldenkrais Method. Drawing on Complexity-Theory considerations this research suggests that The Feldenkrais Method itself offers an embodied, critical, emancipatory and inter-subjective process of discovery and choreographic thinking to the participant and, within performance making contexts, supports collaborative processes of self-organisation of a dance-eco logy, as a process-of-enquiry within a process-of enquiry.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Calibration of NEON\u27s Airborne Imaging Spectrometers

The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) is a continental-scale ecological observation facility currently under construction by the National Science Foundation (NSF). NEON’s mission is to enable understanding and forecasting of the impacts of land-use change and invasive species by providing the infrastructure and consistent methodologies for the collection of continental-scale ecological data. The Airborne Observation Platform (AOP) will play a unique role in scaling individual in-situ measurements collected by NEON to those collected by external satellite-based remote sensing systems. The airborne payload consists of the NEON Imaging Spectrometer (NIS), a waveform LIDAR, and a high-resolution digital camera integrated into a Twin Otter aircraft. Three payloads on separate aircraft will provide coverage of 20 NEON core sites and 40 relocatable sites as well as targets of opportunity and PI-driven science. A key component of the NEON design is the consistent calibration of the airborne instruments to provide reliable and accurate scientific data over the full lifetime of the NEON observatory. The NEON Sensor Test Facility provides the facilities for the laboratory calibration of the AOP instrumentation. This work examines efforts at improving the spectral and radiometric calibration of the NIS in the NEON Sensor Test Facility. Recent work has focused on the traceability and uncertainty of the radiometric and spectral calibration and stability of the calibration from lab to operations. NIST FEL standards are utilized as the radiometric calibration standard and transferred to an integrating sphere through precision transfer radiometers. Wavelength calibration is tied to elemental line sources combined with a scanning monochromator to measure the spectral response functions. To verify the operational stability during acquisitions, a quality check algorithm has been developed to assess the raw NIS data prior to ingestion into the NEON processing framework. The work presented here also examines recent advances in characterizing the level of stray light in the NIS data. A first-order correction is currently being developed and tested on data acquisitions collected during normal operations to assess the impact on higher-level data products. Further research and level of effort will depend on the results of the testing