Spatial and spectral resolution necessary for remotely sensed vegetation studies

An outline is presented of the required spatial and spectral resolution needed for accurate vegetation discrimination and mapping studies as well as for determination of state of health (i.e., detection of stress symptoms) of actively growing vegetation. Good success was achieved in vegetation discrimination and mapping of a heterogeneous forest cover in the ridge and valley portion of the Appalachians using multispectral data acquired with a spatial resolution of 15 m (IFOV). A sensor system delivering 10 to 15 m spatial resolution is needed for both vegetation mapping and detection of stress symptoms. Based on the vegetation discrimination and mapping exercises conducted at the Lost River site, accurate products (vegetation maps) are produced using broad-band spectral data ranging from the .500 to 2.500 micron portion of the spectrum. In order of decreasing utility for vegetation discrimination, the four most valuable TM simulator VNIR bands are: 6 (1.55 to 1.75 microns), 3 (0.63 to 0.69 microns), 5 (1.00 to 1.30 microns) and 4 (0.76 to 0.90 microns)

Spectral Characterization of Suspected Acid Deposition Damage in Red Spruce (picea Rubens) Stands from Vermont

In an attempt to demonstrate the utility of remote sensing systems to monitor sites of suspected acid rain deposition damage, intensive field activities, coupled with aircraft overflights, were centered on red spruce stands in Vermont during August and September of 1984. Remote sensing data were acquired using the Airborne Imaging Spectrometer, Thematic Mapper Simulator, Barnes Model 12 to 1000 Modular Multiband Radiometer and Spectron Engineering Spectrometer (the former two flown on the NASA C-130; the latter two on A Bell UH-1B Iroquois Helicopter). Field spectral data were acquired during the week of the August overflights using a high spectral resolution spectrometer and two broad-band radiometers. Preliminary analyses of these data indicate a number of spectral differences in vegetation between high and low damage sites. Some of these differences are subtle, and are observable only with high spectral resolution sensors; others are less subtle and are observable using broad-band sensors

Preliminary Analysis of AIS Spectral Data Acquired from Semi-arid Shrub Communities in the Owens Valley, California

Spectral characteristics of semic-arid plant communities using 128 channel airborne imaging spectrometer (AIS) data acquired on October 30, 1984. Both field and AIS spectra of vegetation were relatively featureless and differed from substrate spectra primarily in albedo. Unvegetated sand dunes were examined to assess spectral variation resulting from topographic irregularity. Although shrub cover as low as 10% could be detected on relatively flat surfaces, such differences were obscured in more heterogeneous terrain. Sagebrush-covered fans which had been scarred by fire were studied to determine the effect of changes in plant density on reflectance. Despite noise in the atmospherically corrected spectra, these provide better resolution of differences in plant density than spectra which are solar-corrected only. A high negative correlation was found between reflectance and plant cover in areas which had uniform substrates and vegetation types. A lower correlation was found where vegetation and substrates were more diverse

Assessment of AVIRIS data from vegetated sites in the Owens Valley, California

Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data were acquired from the Bishop, CA area, located at the northern end of the Owens Valley, on July 30, 1987. Radiometrically-corrected AVIRIS data were flat-field corrected, and spectral curves produced and analyzed for pixels taken from both native and cultivated vegetation sites, using the JPS SPAM software program and PC-based spreadsheet programs. Analyses focussed on the chlorophyll well and red edge portions of the spectral curves. Results include the following: AVIRIS spectral data are acquired at sufficient spectral resolution to allow detection of blue shifts of both the chlorophyll well and red edge in moisture-stressed vegetation when compared with non-stressed vegetation; a normalization of selected parameters (chlorophyll well and near infrared shoulder) may be used to emphasize the shift in red edge position; and the presence of the red edge in AVIRIS spectral curves may be useful in detecting small amounts (20 to 30 pct cover) of semi-arid and arid vegetation ground cover. A discussion of possible causes of AVIRIS red edge shifts in respsonse to stress is presented

Possible observation of phase separation near a quantum phase transition in doubly connected ultrathin superconducting cylinders of aluminum

The kinetic energy of superconducting electrons in an ultrathin, doubly connected superconducting cylinder, determined by the applied flux, increases as the cylinder diameter decreases, leading to a destructive regime around half-flux quanta and a superconductor to normal metal quantum phase transition (QPT). Regular step-like features in resistance vs. temperature curves taken at fixed flux values were observed near the QPT in ultrathin Al cylinders. It is proposed that these features are most likely resulted from a phase separation near the QPT in which normal regions nucleate in a homogeneous superconducting cylinder.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Design of the PACIFIC study: A randomized controlled trial evaluating a novel treatment for adults with overweight and obesity.

The majority of adults in the United States have overweight or obesity which is associated with significant health and psychological consequences. Behavioral Weight Loss (BWL) is the current gold-standard weight-loss program for adults but recidivism rates continue to be disturbingly high. Given the health consequences of excess weight and the lack of long-term effectiveness of BWL, it is important to identify novel weight-loss programs. We developed the ROC (Regulation of Cues) program to reduce overeating through improvement in sensitivity to appetitive cues and decreased responsivity to external food cues. This study is a 4-arm randomized control trial designed to evaluate the efficacy of ROC, ROC combined with BWL, BWL alone and an active comparator over 24 months. Study recruitment completed in November 2017. Two hundred and seventy-one participants were randomized (mean age = 46.97 years; 82% female, mean BMI = 34.59; 20% Hispanic) and assessments were conducted at baseline, mid-treatment (6 months) and post-treatment (12 months). At this time, participants are completing 6- (18 months) and 12-month (24 months) follow-ups. Targeting novel mechanisms is critically important to improve weight-loss programs. Through this trial, we hope to identify treatments for adults with overweight and obesity to facilitate long-term weight loss and improved health

Brief of Corporate Law Professors as Amici Curie in Support of Respondents

The Supreme Court has looked to the rights of corporate shareholders in determining the rights of union members and non-members to control political spending, and vice versa. The Court sometimes assumes that if shareholders disapprove of corporate political expression, they can easily sell their shares or exercise control over corporate spending. This assumption is mistaken. Because of how capital is saved and invested, most individual shareholders cannot obtain full information about corporate political activities, even after the fact, nor can they prevent their savings from being used to speak in ways with which they disagree. Individual shareholders have no “opt out” rights or practical ability to avoid subsidizing corporate political expression with which they disagree. Nor do individuals have the practical option to refrain from putting their savings into equity investments, as doing so would impose damaging economic penalties and ignore conventional financial guidance for individual investors

The Cellular and Physiological Basis for Lung Repair and Regeneration: Past, Present, and Future.

The respiratory system, which includes the trachea, airways, and distal alveoli, is a complex multi-cellular organ that intimately links with the cardiovascular system to accomplish gas exchange. In this review and as members of the NIH/NHLBI-supported Progenitor Cell Translational Consortium, we discuss key aspects of lung repair and regeneration. We focus on the cellular compositions within functional niches, cell-cell signaling in homeostatic health, the responses to injury, and new methods to study lung repair and regeneration. We also provide future directions for an improved understanding of the cell biology of the respiratory system, as well as new therapeutic avenues

The transcriptional repressor protein NsrR senses nitric oxide directly via a [2Fe-2S] cluster

The regulatory protein NsrR, a member of the Rrf2 family of transcription repressors, is specifically dedicated to sensing nitric oxide (NO) in a variety of pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria. It has been proposed that NO directly modulates NsrR activity by interacting with a predicted [Fe-S] cluster in the NsrR protein, but no experimental evidence has been published to support this hypothesis. Here we report the purification of NsrR from the obligate aerobe Streptomyces coelicolor. We demonstrate using UV-visible, near UV CD and EPR spectroscopy that the protein contains an NO-sensitive [2Fe-2S] cluster when purified from E. coli. Upon exposure of NsrR to NO, the cluster is nitrosylated, which results in the loss of DNA binding activity as detected by bandshift assays. Removal of the [2Fe-2S] cluster to generate apo-NsrR also resulted in loss of DNA binding activity. This is the first demonstration that NsrR contains an NO-sensitive [2Fe-2S] cluster that is required for DNA binding activity

Deconstructing the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender victim of sex trafficking: Harm, exceptionality and religion–sexuality tensions

Contrary to widespread belief, sex trafficking also targets lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) communities. Contemporary social and political constructions of victimhood lie at the heart of regulatory policies on sex trafficking. Led by the US Department of State, knowledge about LGBT victims of trafficking constitutes the newest frontier in the expansion of criminalization measures. These measures represent a crucial shift. From a burgeoning range of preemptive measures enacted to protect an amorphous class of ‘all potential victims’, now policies are heavily premised on the risk posed by traffickers to ‘victims of special interest’. These constructed identities, however, are at odds with established structures. Drawing on a range of literatures, the core task of this article is to confront some of the complexities and tensions surrounding constructions of LGBT trafficking victims. Specifically, the article argues that discourses of ‘exceptional vulnerability’ and the polarized notions of ‘innocence’ and ‘guilt’ inform hierarchies of victimhood. Based on these insights, the article argues for the need to move beyond monolithic understandings of victims, by reframing the politics of harm accordingly