The Influence of Natural Sounds on California Ground Squirrel (Otospermophilus beecheyi) Vigilance and Predator Detection

Many animals rely on the acoustical environment for functions spanning mate attraction, navigation and predator and prey detection. However, recent research suggests that the context of the acoustic environment can greatly influence the propagation and reception of acoustic signals and cues, potentially interfering with the ability of animals to perceive important environmental cues. Here, we sought to determine whether natural sounds influence vigilance and predator detection in the California ground squirrel (Otospermophilus beecheyi). In a manipulative field experiment, we measured squirrel vigilance behavior under three conditions: playback of river rapid noise, playback of cicada chorus noise and a control, unmanipulated sound treatment. Under each condition, we also measured squirrel flight initiation distance (FID), defined as the distance at which an animal flees from an approaching threat. This behavior was in response to an approaching robotic coyote, which simulated a common predator in our study area. Our study is poised to not only determine whether natural sounds influence key behaviors in a common mammal, but will provide needed information on whether natural sounds and human-made sounds cause similar perceptual limitations and behavioral responses in acoustically-oriented animals. For example, California ground squirrels are known to increase vigilance in the presence of anthropogenic noise, but it has yet to be determined how natural noises, with differing frequencies and power, affect behavior. We hope this study will shed light on the differences between these conditions

Earthquake early warning and operational earthquake forecasting as real-time hazard information to mitigate seismic risk at nuclear facilities

Based on our experience in the project REAKT, we present a methodological framework to evaluate the potential benefits and costs of using Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) and Operational Earthquake Forecasting (OEF) for real-time mitigation of seismic risk at nuclear facilities. We focus on evaluating the reliability, significance and usefulness of the aforementioned real-time risk-mitigation tools and on the communication of real-time earthquake information to end-users. We find that EEW and OEF have significant potential for the reduction of seismic risk at nuclear plants, although much scientific research and testing is still necessary to optimise their operation for these sensitive and highly-regulated facilities. While our test bed was Switzerland, the methodology presented here is of general interest to the community of EEW researchers and end-users and its scope is significantly beyond its specific application within REAKT

Feasibility study on earthquake early warning and operational earthquake forecasting for risk mitigation at nuclear power plants

International audienceWithin the framework of the EC-funded project REAKT (Strategies and Tools for Real Time Earthquake Risk Reduction, FP7, contract no. 282862, 2011-2014, www.reaktproject.eu), a task concerns feasibility study and initial implementation of Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) and timedependent seismic hazard analyses aimed at mitigating seismic risk at nuclear power plants (NPPs) in Switzerland. This study is jointly carried out by academic institutions (the Swiss Seismological Service at ETHZ and BRGM) and in cooperation with swissnuclear, the nuclear energy section of swisselectric, an umbrella organisation for the nuclear power plants in Switzerland, which provide about 40% of the electricity needs of the country. Briefly presented in this contribution are the main investigations carried out and results obtained throughout the development of this task, with special focus on: a) evaluating the performances of the selected EEW algorithm (the Virtual Seismologist, VS) in Switzerland and California, in terms of correct detections, false alerts, and missed events; b) embedding the VS algorithm into the earthquake monitoring software SeisComP3 (www.seiscomp3.org) routinely used by the Swiss Seismological Service for earthquake detections and locations; c) customising the User Display (a graphical interface originally developed at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) during Phase II of the ShakeAlert project in California) for optimised use at Swiss NPPs; d) presenting synthetic time-dependent hazard scenarios for Switzerland and e) attempting to associate the above input data with potential mitigation actions and related cost and benefits for NPPs in Switzerland

The Three Pillars of Machine Programming

In this position paper, we describe our vision of the future of machine programming through a categorical examination of three pillars of research. Those pillars are:(i) intention,(ii) invention, and (iii) adaptation. Intention emphasizes advancements in the human-to-computer and computer-to-machine-learning interfaces. Invention emphasizes the creation or refinement of algorithms or core hardware and software building blocks through machine learning (ML). Adaptation emphasizes advances in the use of ML-based constructs to autonomously evolve software

A field investigation of phreatophyte-induced fluctuations in the water table

This is the published version. Copyright American Geophysical Union[1] Hydrographs from shallow wells in vegetated riparian zones frequently display a distinctive pattern of diurnal water table fluctuations produced by variations in plant water use. A multisite investigation assessed the major controls on these fluctuations and the ecohydrologic insights that can be gleaned from them. Spatial and temporal variations in the amplitude of the fluctuations are primarily a function of variations in (1) the meteorological drivers of plant water use, (2) vegetation density, type, and vitality, and (3) the specific yield of sediments in the vicinity of the water table. Past hydrologic conditions experienced by the riparian zone vegetation, either in previous years or earlier within the same growing season, are also an important control. Diurnal water table fluctuations can be considered a diagnostic indicator of groundwater consumption by phreatophytes at most sites, so the information embedded within these fluctuations should be more widely exploited in ecohydrologic studies

Super-heavy fermion material as metallic refrigerant for adiabatic demagnetization cooling

Low-temperature refrigeration is of crucial importance in fundamental research of condensed matter physics, as the investigations of fascinating quantum phenomena, such as superconductivity, superfluidity and quantum criticality, often require refrigeration down to very low temperatures. Currently, cryogenic refrigerators with $^3$He gas are widely used for cooling below 1 Kelvin. However, usage of the gas is being increasingly difficult due to the current world-wide shortage. Therefore, it is important to consider alternative methods of refrigeration. Here, we show that a new type of refrigerant, super-heavy electron metal, YbCo$_2$Zn$_{20}$, can be used for adiabatic demagnetization refrigeration, which does not require 3He gas. A number of advantages includes much better metallic thermal conductivity compared to the conventional insulating refrigerants. We also demonstrate that the cooling performance is optimized in Yb$_{1-x}$Sc$_x$Co$_2$Zn$_{20}$ by partial Sc substitution with $x\sim$0.19. The substitution induces chemical pressure which drives the materials close to a zero-field quantum critical point. This leads to an additional enhancement of the magnetocaloric effect in low fields and low temperatures enabling final temperatures well below 100 mK. Such performance has up to now been restricted to insulators. Since nearly a century the same principle of using local magnetic moments has been applied for adiabatic demagnetization cooling. This study opens new possibilities of using itinerant magnetic moments for the cryogen-free refrigeration

On geometric complexity of earthquake focal zone and fault system: A statistical study

We discuss various methods used to investigate the geometric complexity of earthquakes and earthquake faults, based both on a point-source representation and the study of interrelations between earthquake focal mechanisms. We briefly review the seismic moment tensor formalism and discuss in some detail the representation of double-couple (DC) earthquake sources by normalized quaternions. Non-DC earthquake sources like the CLVD focal mechanism are also considered. We obtain the characterization of the earthquake complex source caused by summation of disoriented DC sources. We show that commonly defined geometrical fault barriers correspond to the sources without any CLVD component. We analyze the CMT global earthquake catalog to examine whether the focal mechanism distribution suggests that the CLVD component is likely to be zero in tectonic earthquakes. Although some indications support this conjecture, we need more extensive and significantly more accurate data to answer this question fully.Comment: 53 pages text, 12 figure

Social Class

Discussion of class structure in fifth-century Athens, historical constitution of theater audiences, and the changes in the comic representation of class antagonism from Aristophanes to Menander

Correlates of loneliness among university students

Background The purpose of this study was to investigate level of loneliness, essential needs during university education, and relationships between loneliness, essential needs, and characteristics of university students. A sample comprising 721 students participated in the study. The mean age was 21.58 (SD = 1.73) with a range from 18 to 25. The majority of the students were female (70.6%) and were living in students' dormitory (67.5%) with low (87.8%) income, away from their parents. Methods The UCLA-R loneliness scale and sociodemographic questionnaire which includes an open-ended question on essential needs during university education were administered. Pearson-Product-Moment correlations were used to explore the relationships between participants' loneliness, needs, and characteristics. Results It was found that 60.2% of the participants experienced loneliness. Economical support (81.6%), social interaction (46.9%) and psychosocial support (35%) were the essential needs during university education reported by the participants. The study findings indicate that there were significant relationships between the needs of economical support, social interaction, and loneliness level of university students. Results also show that there were significant relationships among romantic relationship, parents' status and loneliness. Participants' loneliness levels were relatively higher who had not any romantic relationship and were not from married families. Conclusion The findings of this study provided essential information, about Turkish university students, concerning: level of loneliness and relationships that exist among loneliness, needs and sociodemographic characteristics. The findings also suggest implications for psychosocial practice. Because of the mean of loneliness were found to be high (45.49 ± 10.07), for this study, professionals need to pay attention to Turkish university students' psychosocial state, and need to empower them in establishing social relations