Asian monsoon hydrometeorology from TES and SCIAMACHY water vapor isotope measurements and LMDZ simulations: Implications for speleothem climate record interpretation

International audienceObservations show that heavy oxygen isotope composition in precipitation (delta O-18(p)) increases from coastal southeastern (SE) China to interior northwestern (NW) China during the wet season, contradicting expectations from simple Rayleigh distillation theory. Here we employ stable isotopes of precipitation and vapor from satellite measurements and climate model simulations to characterize the moisture processes that control Asian monsoon precipitation and relate these processes to speleothem paleoclimate records. We find that delta O-18(p) is low over SE China as a result of local and upstream condensation and that delta O-18(p) is high over NW China because of evaporative enrichment of O-18 as raindrops fall through dry air. We show that delta O-18(p) at cave sites over southern China is weakly correlated with upstream precipitation in the core of the Indian monsoon region rather than local precipitation, but it is well-correlated with the delta O-18(p) over large areas of southern and central China, consistent with coherent speleothem delta O-18(p) variations over different parts of China. Previous studies have documented high correlations between speleothem delta O-18(p) and millennial timescale climate forcings, and we suggest that the high correlation between insolation and speleothem delta O-18(p) in southern China reflects the variations of hydrologic processes over the Indian monsoon region on millennial and orbital timescales. The delta O-18(p) in the drier part (north of similar to 30 degrees N) of China, on the other hand, has consistently negative correlations with local precipitation and may capture local hydrologic processes related to changes in the extent of the Hadley circulation

Early Components of the Complement Classical Activation Pathway in Human Systemic Autoimmune Diseases

The complement system consists of effector proteins, regulators, and receptors that participate in host defense against pathogens. Activation of the complement system, via the classical pathway (CP), has long been recognized in immune complex-mediated tissue injury, most notably systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Paradoxically, a complete deficiency of an early component of the CP, as evidenced by homozygous genetic deficiencies reported in human, are strongly associated with the risk of developing SLE or a lupus-like disease. Similarly, isotype deficiency attributable to a gene copy number variation, and/or the presence of autoantibodies directed against a CP component or a regulatory protein that result in an acquired deficiency are relatively common in SLE patients. Applying accurate assay methodologies with rigorous data validations, low gene copy numbers of total C4, heterozygous and homozygous deficiencies of C4A have been shown as medium to large effect size risk factors, while high copy numbers of total C4 or C4A as prevalent protective factors, of European and East-Asian SLE. Here, we summarize the current knowledge related to genetic deficiency and insufficiency, and acquired protein alterations for C1q, C1r, C1s, C4A/C4B, and C2 in disease pathogenesis and prognosis of SLE, and, briefly, for other systemic autoimmune diseases. As the complement system is increasingly found to be associated with autoimmune diseases, it has become an attractive therapeutic target. We highlight the recent developments and offer a balanced perspective concerning future investigations and therapeutic applications with a focus on early components of the CP in human systemic autoimmune diseases

The Impact of Anthropogenic Land Use and Land Cover Change on Regional Climate Extremes

Recent research highlights the role of land surface processes in heat waves, droughts, and other extreme events. Here we use an earth system model (ESM) from the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) to investigate the regional impacts of historical anthropogenic land useland cover change (LULCC) on combined extremes of temperature and humidity. A bivariate assessment allows us to consider aridity and moist enthalpy extremes, quantities central to human experience of near-surface climate conditions. We show that according to this model, conversion of forests to cropland has contributed to much of the upper central US and central Europe experiencing extreme hot, dry summers every 2-3 years instead of every 10 years. In the tropics, historical patterns of wood harvesting, shifting cultivation and regrowth of secondary vegetation have enhanced near surface moist enthalpy, leading to extensive increases in the occurrence of humid conditions throughout the tropics year round. These critical land use processes and practices are not included in many current generation land models, yet these results identify them as critical factors in the energy and water cycles of the midlatitudes and tropics

Organisational sustainability modelling - An emerging service and analytics model for evaluating Cloud Computing adoption with two case studies

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Cloud Computing is an emerging technology which promises to bring with it great benefits to all types of computing activities including business support. However, the full commitment to Cloud Computing necessary to gain the full benefit is a major project for any organisation, since it necessitates adoption of new business processes and attitudes to computing services in addition to the immediately obvious systems changes. Hence the evaluation of a Cloud Computing project needs to consider the balance of benefits and risks to the organisation in the full context of the environment in which it operates; it is not sufficient or appropriate to examine technical considerations alone.In this paper, we consider the application of CAPM, a well established approach used for the analysis of risks and benefits of commercial projects to Cloud adoption projects and propose a revised and improved technique, OSM. To support the validity of OSM, two full case studies are presented. In the first, we describe an application of the approach to the iSolutions Group at University of Southampton, which focuses on evaluations of Cloud Computing service improvement. We then illustrate the use of OSM for measuring learning satisfaction of two cohort groups at the University of Greenwich. The results confirm the advantages of using OSM. We conclude that OSM can analyse the risk and return status of Cloud Computing services and help organisations that adopt Cloud Computing to evaluate and review their Cloud Computing projects and services. OSM is an emerging service and analytics model supported by several case studies

A modified cementing technique using BoneSource to augment fixation of the acetabulum in a sheep model

Background and purpose Our aim was to prove in an animal model that the use of HA paste at the cement-bone interface in the acetabulum would improve fixation. We examined, in sheep, the effect of interposing a layer of hydroxyapatite cement around the periphery of a polyethylene socket prior to fixing it using polymethylemethacrylate (PMMA). Methods We made a randomized study involving 22 sheep to test whether the application of BoneSource hydroxyapatite material to the surface of the ovine acetabulum prior to cementing a polyethylene cup at hip arthroplasty improved the fixation and the nature of the interface. We studied the gross radiographical appearance of the implant-bone interface and the histological appearance at the interface. Results There were more radiolucencies evident in the control group. Histologically, only sheep randomized into the BoneSource group exhibited a fully osseointegrated interface. Use of the hydroxyapatite material did not confer any detrimental effects. In some cases the material appeared to have been fully resorbed. When the material was evident on histological section, it was incorporated into an osseointegrated interface. There was no giant cell reaction present in any case. There was no evidence of migration of BoneSource to the articulation. Interpretation The application of HA material prior to cementation of a socket produced an improved interface. The technique may be useful in man with to extend the longevity of the cemented implant by protecting the socket interface from the effect of hydrodynamic fluid flow and particulate debris

Are European equity markets efficient? New evidence from fractal analysis

We report an empirical analysis of long-range dependence in the returns of eight stock market indices, using the Rescaled Range Analysis (RRA) to estimate the Hurst exponent. Monte Carlo and bootstrap simulations are used to construct critical values for the null hypothesis of no long-range dependence. The issue of disentangling short-range and long-range dependence is examined. Pre-filtering by fitting a (short-range) autoregressive model eliminates part of the long-range dependence when the latter is present, while failure to pre-filter leaves open the possibility of conflating short-range and long-range dependence. There is a strong evidence of long-range dependence for the small central European Czech stock market index PX-glob, and a weaker evidence for two smaller western European stock market indices, MSE (Spain) and SWX (Switzerland). There is little or no evidence of long-range dependence for the other five indices, including those with the largest capitalizations among those considered, DJIA (US) and FTSE350 (UK). These results are generally consistent with prior expectations concerning the relative efficiency of the stock markets examined