Toward a new generation of effective problem solvers and project-oriented applied ecologists

Abstract. In an era of environmental crises, conservation and management strategies need a new generation of applied ecologists. Here, we stimulate the next-generation applied ecologists to acquire a pragmatic mentality of problems solvers in real contexts, using the wide arsenal of concepts, approaches and techniques available in the project management (PM) arena using a road map based on the main steps of conservation project cycle. The acquisition of the conceptual and operational framework of PM can allow the next-generation applied ecologists to take on a more important role in nature conservation strategies: from data samplers, analyzers and interpreters to suppliers of solutions and decisions driving changes in species' targets inhabiting real contexts. Since the high number of applied ecologists, this change in approach (from analytical to operational) could make the difference in conservation science. We also provided, as a conceptual framework, a set of suggestions and approaches useful to facilitate this change

Scalar Field Theory on Non-commutative Snyder Space-Time

We construct a scalar field theory on the Snyder non-commutative space-time. The symmetry underlying the Snyder geometry is deformed at the co-algebraic level only, while its Poincar\'e algebra is undeformed. The Lorentz sector is undeformed at both algebraic and co-algebraic level, but the co-product for momenta (defining the star-product) is non-co-associative. The Snyder-deformed Poincar\'e group is described by a non-co-associative Hopf algebra. The definition of the interacting theory in terms of a non-associative star-product is thus questionable. We avoid the non-associativity by the use of a space-time picture based on the concept of realization of a non-commutative geometry. The two main results we obtain are: (i) the generic (namely for any realization) construction of the co-algebraic sector underlying the Snyder geometry and (ii) the definition of a non-ambiguous self interacting scalar field theory on this space-time. The first order correction terms of the corresponding Lagrangian are explicitly computed. The possibility to derive Noether charges for the Snyder space-time is also discussed.Comment: 10 pages; v2: introduction rewritten, co-algebraic analysis improved, references added; to appear in PR

The Dynamics of the Global Monsoon: Connecting Theory and Observations

Earth's monsoons are complex systems, governed by both large-scale constraints on the atmospheric general circulation and regional interactions with continents and orography, and coupled to the ocean. Monsoons have historically been considered as distinct regional systems, and the prevailing view has been, and remains, an intuitive picture of monsoons as a form of large-scale sea breeze, driven by land-sea contrast. However, climate dynamics is seldom intuitive. More recently, a perspective has emerged within the observational and Earth system modeling communities of a global monsoon that is the result of a seasonally migrating tropical convergence zone, intimately connected to the global tropical atmospheric overturning and localized by regional characteristics. Parallel with this, over the past decade, much theoretical progress has been made in understanding the fundamental dynamics of the seasonal Hadley cells and Intertropical Convergence Zones via the use of hierarchical modeling approaches, including highly idealized simulations such as aquaplanets. Here we review the theoretical progress made, and explore the extent to which these theoretical advances can help synthesize theory with observations and understand differing characteristics of regional monsoons. We show that this theoretical work provides strong support for the migrating convergence zone picture, allows constraints on the circulation to be identified via the momentum and energy budgets, and lays out a framework to assess variability and possible future changes to the monsoon. Limitations of current theories are discussed, including the need for a better understanding of the influence of zonal asymmetries and transients on the large-scale tropical circulation

Improving the early detection of alien wood-boring beetles in ports and surrounding forests

International ports are generally considered the most likely points of entry for alien wood-boring beetles. A better understanding of the factors affecting their arrival and establishment at ports and their surrounding areas is of utmost importance to improve the efficacy and the cost-effectiveness of early detection programmes. Our work aimed at understanding how port size and the characteristics of the landscape surrounding the port, in terms of forest cover and forest composition, influence the occurrence of alien wood-boring beetles. From May to September 2012, 15 Italian international ports and the surrounding forests were monitored with multi-funnel traps baited with a multi-lure blend (\u3b1-pinene, ethanol, ipsdienol, ipsenol, methyl-butenol), three in each port and three in forests located 3\u20135 km away from the port. We identified both alien and native Scolytinae, Cerambycidae and Buprestidae beetles. Fourteen alien species, among which four are new to Italy, were trapped. Alien species richness was positively related to the amount of imported commodities at the port scale. Broadleaf forests surrounding ports received larger number of alien species than conifer forests. By contrast, total forest cover in the landscape surrounding ports was positively related to the occurrence of native but not alien species. The alien and native species richness was higher in the surrounding forests than in the ports. Synthesis and applications. The simultaneous use of traps in ports with large volume of imported commodities and in their surrounding broadleaf forests can strongly increase the probability of alien wood-boring beetle interceptions. The identification of sites where the arrival and establishment of alien species is more probable, combined with an efficient trapping protocol, can substantially improve the efficacy of early detection. Similar approaches may be used in other countries as early warning systems to implement timely measures to eradicate or contain alien invasions at the European scale

Disentangling global warming, multi-decadal variability, and El Niño in Pacific temperatures

A key challenge in climate science is to separate observed temperature changes into components due to internal variability and responses to external forcing. Extended integrations of forced and unforced climate models are often used for this purpose. Here we demonstrate a novel method to separate modes of internal variability from global warming based on differences in time scale and spatial pattern, without relying on climate models. We identify uncorrelated components of Pacific sea surface temperature variability due to global warming, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), and the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Our results give statistical representations of PDO and ENSO that are consistent with their being separate processes, operating on different time scales, but are otherwise consistent with canonical definitions. We isolate the multidecadal variability of the PDO and find that it is confined to midlatitudes; tropical sea surface temperatures and their teleconnections mix in higher‐frequency variability. This implies that midlatitude PDO anomalies are more persistent than previously thought

Generalized Uncertainty Principle and the Ramsauer-Townsend Effect

The scattering cross section of electrons in noble gas atoms exhibits a minimum value at electron energies of approximately 1eV. This is the Ramsauer-Townsend effect. In this letter, we study the Ramsauer-Townsend effect in the framework of the Generalized Uncertainty Principle.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure