An uncommon period of cold and change of lapse rate in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and Wyoming

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): Temperature and lapse rate show extreme departures from mean values for May 1981 through October 1986 at the high-elevation station D1 on Niwot Ridge in the Front Range, Colorado. If the D1 record is accurate, this period may present an opportunity to identify factors that influence temperature at high elevations, but not necessarily at low elevations. This paper focuses on four questions: (1) Is the D1 temperature record accurate? (2) What is the geographical extent of this anomalous cold period? (3) Are there any identifiable contributing factors or physical events relating to this period? (4) Is there evidence of a similar anomalous period in the past

Intersectionality

An individual studying and working at a university is never seen as simply an “educator”, “administrative staff member”, or “student”, but as a complex being with a profession, function, and various identity markers like age, gender, sexuality, ability, ethnicity, skin colour, social background, language, religious beliefs, class, and academic line, among others. Drawing from Kimberlé Crenshaw’s 1989 definition of “intersectionality”, we engage this framework in this chapter to examine how structures create both obstacles and opportunities for individuals along the lines of racism, ableism, sexism, trans- and homo-hate, and more. Illustrated with fictive cases, the chapter highlights how identity, power relations, discrimination, and inequalities occur in varying and intersecting dimensions in university spaces. We present intersectionality as a theoretical framework to facilitate a contemplative exercise in a manner that advances a critical understanding of power axes in academia. Subsequently, in line with the tenets of the framework, we list some questions for the critical evaluation of one’s own privileges and oppressions, as well as the structures of power in institutions, to foster action based on a more detailed understanding of problems

The TNF-α System: Functional Aspects in Depression, Narcolepsy and Psychopharmacology

Changes of the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) system have been shown to be involved in the development of psychiatric disorders and are additionally associated with changes in body weight as well as endocrine and metabolic changes in psychiatric patients

Analysis of four decades of high elevation climate data

Four decades of instrumented climate records at D1 on Niwot Ridge suggest that high elevation data are an important - and even unique - part of the full climate picture. High elevation data provide information on changing lapse rates as well as model verification for global warming, which is predicted to occur earliest in high latitudes and at high elevations. The D1 records show climatic trends that arguably support global warming, assuming that greater planetary wave amplitude is verification of warming. Lapse rates reflect conditions of air mass stability, atmospheric moisture, and could [sic] cover, which contribute to feedback processes involving temperature, precipitation, and snowpack. The D1 record show a period, 1981-1985, when the lapse rate increased significantly, and this change was not detected by other data

Pilot study of horizontal roughing filtration in northern Ghana as pretreatment for highly turbid dugout water

Thesis (M. Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2008.Includes bibliographical references (p. 123-126).In Northern Region Ghana (NRG), highly turbid rainwater runoff and intermittent streams are collected in earthen dams called dugouts. These dams serve as many communities' main source of drinking and domestic water despite their physical and microbial contamination. Slow sand filtration (SSF), a low-cost technology for treating microbial contaminated drinking water is only recommended for water < 50 NTU. Two research objectives were established to address this issue; to characterize dugout particle sizes and distribution and to test a pilot horizontal roughing filter's (HRF) effectiveness at removing turbidity from highly turbid dugout water. Among the four dugouts tested in NRG, they typically have high concentrations of non-setttleable colloidal (< 1 m) and small supracolloidal particles (< 10 m). In addition, a pilot HRF at Ghanasco Dam in Tamale, NRG was conducted using three 7m tubes filled with three sizes of granite gravel, local gravel, and broken pieces of ceramic filters arranged by decreasing size. The pilot study was run for 52 days to test if HRF could reduce the high turbidity (305 NTU) to < 50 NTU to make SSF a viable option. There were a number of promising outcomes: the best performing media, the granite gravel, by removing an average 46% of the influent turbidity (filter coefficient X = 0.002 min-1), produced an average effluent turbidity of 51 NTU which almost achieved the goal of < 50 NTU. The granite gravel HRF removed twice as much turbidity (46%) as plain settling (25%). Overall, the granite gravel removed 76% and 84% of the influent turbidity according to the settling test and pilot HRF data respectively. Three recommendations derived from this pilot HRF study are (1) to monitor dugout water quality, (2) to investigate media and particle properties to enhance colloidal particle removal(cont.) (3) to modify the HRF to effectively remove very high dry season turbidities and likely even higher rainy-season turbidities from dugout water.by Tamar Rachelle Losleben.M.Eng

Unternehmen Mittelklasse, ein unpassender Kastrat und wer am lautesten schreit: Das schwierige Verhältnis der Times zu Giovanni Battista Velluti

Nach dem Erfolg, den Giovanni Battista Velluti (1780–1861) als Armando im Giacomo Meyerbeers Crociato in Egitto 1824 zunächst im La Fenice in Venedig, kurz darauf, im Mai, im Teatro della Pergola in Florenz gefeiert hatte, debütierte der letzte berühmte Opernkastrat am 30. Juni 1825 im King’s Theatre der englischen Hauptstadt. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt war er wenigstens den Leser*innen der jüngst gegründeten Musikzeitschrift Harmonicon kein Unbekannter mehr. Sie dürften die Berichte aus Florenz und die ablehnende Haltung des Korrespondenten gekannt haben; 1825 vermittelte man nach England, dass Velluti fürchterlich schlecht intoniert habe, während er in italienischen Rezensionen gefeiert wurde als „absoluter Meister seiner Stimme“

A new approach to generating research-quality data through citizen science: The USA National Phenology Monitoring System

Phenology is one of the most sensitive biological responses to climate change, and recent changes in phenology have the potential to shake up ecosystems. In some cases, it appears they already are. Thus, for ecological reasons it is critical that we improve our understanding of species&#x2019; phenologies and how these phenologies are responding to recent, rapid climate change. Phenological events like flowering and bird migrations are easy to observe, culturally important, and, at a fundamental level, naturally inspire human curiosity&#x2014; thus providing an excellent opportunity to engage citizen scientists. The USA National Phenology Network has recently initiated a national effort to encourage people at different levels of expertise&#x2014;from backyard naturalists to professional scientists&#x2014;to observe phenological events and contribute to a national database that will be used to greatly improve our understanding of spatio-temporal variation in phenology and associated phenological responses to climate change.&#xd;&#xa;&#xd;&#xa;Traditional phenological observation protocols identify specific dates at which individual phenological events are observed. The scientific usefulness of long-term phenological observations could be improved with a more carefully structured protocol. At the USA-NPN we have developed a new approach that directs observers to record each day that they observe an individual plant, and to assess and report the state of specific life stages (or phenophases) as occurring or not occurring on that plant for each observation date. Evaluation is phrased in terms of simple, easy-to-understand, questions (e.g. &#x201c;Do you see open flowers?&#x201d;), which makes it very appropriate for a citizen science audience. From this method, a rich dataset of phenological metrics can be extracted, including the duration of a phenophase (e.g. open flowers), the beginning and end points of a phenophase (e.g. traditional phenological events such as first flower and last flower), multiple distinct occurrences of phenophases within a single growing season (e.g multiple flowering events, common in drought-prone regions), as well as quantification of sampling frequency and observational uncertainties. These features greatly enhance the utility of the resulting data for statistical analyses addressing questions such as how phenological events vary in time and space, and in response to global change. This new protocol is an important step forward, and its widespread adoption will increase the scientific value of data collected by citizen scientists.&#xd;&#xa

Virtual Roundtable on the Elimination of Violence Against Women in Academia and 30 days of Reflection

The overall aim of this report is to record the emotions, aim, objectives, results and conclusions that we developed during the Virtual Roundtable for the Elimination of Violence Against Women in Academia, on November 25, 2020. The report is built around the event and is meant to enclose our space of reflection (30 days, initiated on the Facebook page of the Centre). The report is divided into five sections: 1. Introduction; 2. Welcome; 3. Keynote speech; 4. Engaging with a story; 5. References; 6. Appendix