Extremism seeking control of a flotation circuit using peak air recovery

A flotation circuit is simulated with an extremum seeking controller to keep the cells operating at the optimal operating point represented by peak air recovery. It is assumed that at this operating point, the froth layer is stabilised and the mineral recovery of the flotation cell is maximised resulting in optimal performance. The extremum seeking controller uses periodic perturbations in the aeration rate to steer the system through an unknown static map towards the peak in air recovery. The controller is able to find the peak air recovery operating point and track the point as it changes in the presence of external disturbances. The extremum seeking controller is ideally suited for model-independent long-term automated optimisation of a flotation circuit with a time-varying optimal operating point.https://www.journals.elsevier.com/ifac-papersonlineElectrical, Electronic and Computer Engineerin

Scope to predict soil properties at within-field scale from small samples using proximally sensed γ-ray spectrometer and EM induction data

Spatial predictions of soil properties are needed for various purposes. However, the costs associated with soil sampling and laboratory analysis are substantial. One way to improve efficiencies is to combine measurement of soil properties with collection of cheaper-to-measure ancillary data. There are two possible approaches. The first is the formation of classes from ancillary data. A second is the use of a simple predictive linear model of the target soil property on the ancillary variables. Here, results are presented and compared where proximally sensed gamma-ray (γ-ray) spectrometry and electromagnetic induction (EMI) data are used to predict the variation in topsoil properties (e.g. clay content and pH). In the first instance, the proximal data is numerically clustered using a fuzzy k-means (FKM) clustering algorithm, to identify contiguous classes. The resultant digital soil maps (i.e. k = 2–10 classes) are consistent with a soil series map generated using traditional soil profile description, classification and mapping methods at a highly variable site near the township of Shelford, Nottinghamshire UK. In terms of prediction, the calculated expected value of mean squared prediction error (i.e. σ2p,C) indicated that values of k = 7 and 8 were ideal for predicting clay and pH. Secondly, a linear mixed model (LMM) is fitted in which the proximal data are fixed effects but the residuals are treated as a combination of a spatially correlated random effect and an independent and identically distributed error. In terms of prediction, the expected value of the mean squared prediction error from a regression (σ2p,R) suggested that the regression models were able to predict clay content, better than FKM clustering. The reverse was true with respect to pH, however. We conclude that both methods have merit. In the case of the clustering the approach is able to account for soil properties which have non-linearity's with the ancillary data (i.e. pH), whereas the LMM approach is best when there is a strong linear relationship (i.e. clay)

Active Amplification of the Terrestrial Albedo to Mitigate Climate Change: An Exploratory Study

This study explores the potential to enhance the reflectance of solar insolation by the human settlement and grassland components of the Earth's terrestrial surface as a climate change mitigation measure. Preliminary estimates derived using a static radiative transfer model indicate that such efforts could amplify the planetary albedo enough to offset the current global annual average level of radiative forcing caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gases by as much as 30 percent or 0.76 W/m2. Terrestrial albedo amplification may thus extend, by about 25 years, the time available to advance the development and use of low-emission energy conversion technologies which ultimately remain essential to mitigate long-term climate change. However, additional study is needed to confirm the estimates reported here and to assess the economic and environmental impacts of active land-surface albedo amplification as a climate change mitigation measure.Comment: 21 pages, 3 figures. In press with Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, N

Probing CP Violation with the Deuteron Electric Dipole Moment

We present an analysis of the electric dipole moment (EDM) of the deuteron as induced by CP-violating operators of dimension 4, 5 and 6 including theta QCD, the EDMs and color EDMs of quarks, four-quark interactions and the Weinberg operator. We demonstrate that the precision goal of the EDM Collaboration's proposal to search for the deuteron EDM, (1-3)\times 10^{-27} e cm, will provide an improvement in sensitivity to these sources of one-two orders of magnitude relative to the existing bounds. We consider in detail the level to which CP-odd phases can be probed within the MSSM.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures; precision estimates clarified, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Optimising the spatial planning of prescribed burns to achieve multiple objectives in a fire-dependent ecosystem

1. There is potential for negative consequences for the ecological integrity of fire-dependent ecosystems as a result of inappropriate fire regimes. This can occur when asset (property) protection is prioritised over conservation objectives in burn programs

Growing Environmental Activists: Developing Environmental Agency and Engagement Through Children’s Fiction.

We explore how story has the potential to encourage environmental engagement and a sense of agency provided that critical discussion takes place. We illuminate this with reference to the philosophies of John Macmurray on personal agency and social relations; of John Dewey on the primacy of experience for philosophy; and of Paul Ricoeur on hermeneutics, dialogue, dialectics and narrative. We view the use of fiction for environmental understanding as hermeneutic, a form of conceptualising place which interprets experience and perception. The four writers for young people discussed are Ernest Thompson Seton, Kenneth Grahame, Michelle Paver and Philip Pullman. We develop the concept of critical dialogue, and link this to Crick's demand for active democratic citizenship. We illustrate the educational potential for environmental discussions based on literature leading to deeper understanding of place and environment, encouraging the belief in young people that they can be and become agents for change. We develop from Zimbardo the key concept of heroic resister to encourage young people to overcome peer pressure. We conclude with a call to develop a greater awareness of the potential of fiction for learning, and for writers to produce more focused stories engaging with environmental responsibility and activism

Intensive disc-reverberation mapping of Fairall 9: First year of Swift and LCO monitoring

We present results of time-series analysis of the first year of the Fairall 9 intensive disc-reverberation campaign. We used Swift and the Las Cumbres Observatory global telescope network to continuously monitor Fairall 9 from X-rays to near-infrared at a daily to subdaily cadence. The cross-correlation function between bands provides evidence for a lag spectrum consistent with the τ ∝ λ4/3 scaling expected for an optically thick, geometrically thin blackbody accretion disc. Decomposing the flux into constant and variable components, the variable component’s spectral energy distribution is slightly steeper than the standard accretion disc prediction. We find evidence at the Balmer edge in both the lag and flux spectra for an additional bound-free continuum contribution that may arise from reprocessing in the broad-line region. The inferred driving light curve suggests two distinct components, a rapidly variable (100 d) component with an opposite lag to the reverberation signal.JVHS and KH acknowledge support from the Science and Technology Facilities Council grant ST/R000824/1. RE gratefully acknowledges support from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Swift Key Project grant number 80NSSC19K0153. JMG gratefully acknowledges support from NASA under the ADAP award 80NSSC17K0126. AAB, KLP, and PAE acknowledge support from the UK Space Agency. Research by AJB was supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) grant AST-1907290. EMC gratefully acknowledges support from the NSF through grant AST-1909199. MV gratefully acknowledges financial support from the Independent Research Fund Denmark via grant number DFF 8021-00130. The authors appreciate the hard work and dedication of the Swift Observatory staff, who created a new UVOT mode in support of this project and put in considerableeffort in scheduling this large program. This work makes use of observations from the LCO network, and of the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This research was made possible through the use of the AAVSO Photometric All-Sky Survey (APASS), funded by the Robert Martin Ayers Sciences Fund and NSF AST-1412587. This research also made use of ASTROPY, a community-developed core PYTHON package for astronomy (Astropy Collaboration et al. 2013), and MATPLOTLIB (Hunter 2007)

Recurrence of Dupuytren’s contracture: A consensus-based definition

Purpose: One of the major determinants of Dupyutren disease (DD) treatment efficacy is recurrence of the contracture. Unfortunately, lack of agreement in the literature on what constitutes recurrence makes it nearly impossible to compare the multiple treatments alternatives available today. The aim of this study is to bring an unbiased pool of experts to agree upon what would be considered a recurrence of DD after treatment; and from that consensus establish a much-needed definition for DD recurrence. Methods: To reach an expert consensus on the definition of recurrence we used the Delphi method and invited 43 Dupuytren’s research and treatment experts from 10 countries to participate by answering a series of questionnaire rounds. After each round the answers were analyzed and the experts received a feedback report with another questionnaire round to further hone in of the definition. We defined consensus when at least 70% of the experts agreed on a topic. Results: Twenty-one experts agreed to participate in this study. After four consensus rounds, we agreed that DD recurrence should be defined as “more than 20 degrees of contracture recurrence in any treated joint at one year post-treatment compared to six weeks post-treatment”. In addition, “recurrence should be reported individually for every treated joint” and afterwards measurements should be repeated and reported yearly. Conclusion: This study provides the most comprehensive to date definition of what should be considered recurrence of DD. These standardized criteria should allow us to better evaluate the many treatment alternatives