Advances and visions in large-scale hydrological modelling: findings from the 11th Workshop on Large-Scale Hydrological Modelling

Large-scale hydrological modelling has become increasingly wide-spread during the last decade. An annual workshop series on large-scale hydrological modelling has provided, since 1997, a forum to the German-speaking community for discussing recent developments and achievements in this research area. In this paper we present the findings from the 2007 workshop which focused on advances and visions in large-scale hydrological modelling. We identify the state of the art, difficulties and research perspectives with respect to the themes "sensitivity of model results", "integrated modelling" and "coupling of processes in hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere". Some achievements in large-scale hydrological modelling during the last ten years are presented together with a selection of remaining challenges for the future

The dependence of strange hadron multiplicities on the speed of hadronization

Hadron multiplicities are calculated in the ALCOR model for the Pb+Pb collisions at CERN SPS energy. Considering the newest experimental results, we display our prediction obtained from the ALCOR model for stable hadrons including strange baryons and anti-baryons.Comment: 8 pages, LaTeX in IOP style, appeared in the Proceedings of Strangeness'97 Conference, Santorini, April 14-18 1997, J. of Physics G23 (1997) 194

Holocene Earthquakes and Late Pleistocene Slip-Rate Estimates on the Wassuk Range Fault Zone, Nevada

The Wassuk Range fault zone is an 80‐km‐long, east‐dipping, high‐angle normal fault that flanks the eastern margin of the Wassuk Range in central Nevada. Observations from two alluvial fan systems truncated by the fault yield information on the vertical slip rate and Holocene earthquake history along the range front. At the apex of the Rose Creek alluvial fan, radiocarbon dating of offset stratigraphy exposed in two fault trenches shows that multiple earthquakes resulted in 7.0 m of vertical offset along the fault since ∼9400 cal B.P. These data yield a Holocene vertical slip rate of 0.7±0.1  mm/yr. The south trench exposure records at least two faulting events since ∼9400 cal B.P., with the most recent displacement postdating ∼2810 cal B.P. The north trench exposure records an ∼1  m offset between ∼610 cal B.P. and A.D. ∼1850, a 1.3‐m minimum offset prior to ∼1460 cal B.P., and one earlier undated earthquake of a similar size. Variations in stratigraphy and limited datable material preclude a unique correlation of paleoevents between the two trenches. Approximately 25 km north, the range‐front fault has truncated and uplifted a remnant of the Penrod Canyon fan by \u3e40  m since the surface was deposited ∼113  ka, based on cosmogenic dating of two large boulders. These data allow an estimate of the minimum late Pleistocene vertical slip rate at \u3e0.3–0.4  mm/yr for the Wassuk Range fault zone

Ultrafast sublattice pseudospin relaxation in graphene probed by polarization-resolved photoluminescence

Electronic pseudospin degrees of freedom in two-dimensional materials exhibit unique carrier-field interactions which allow for advanced control strategies. Here, we investigate ultrafast sublattice pseudospin relaxation in graphene by means of polarization-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy. A comparison with microscopic Boltzmann simulations allows us to determine a lifetime of the optically aligned pseudospin distribution of 12±2fs. This experimental approach extends the toolbox of graphene pseudospintronics, providing additional means to investigate pseudospin dynamics in active devices or under external fields

Holocene Earthquakes and Late Pleistocene Slip Rate Estimates on the Wassuk Range Fault Zone, Nevada, USA

The Wassuk Range fault zone is an 80‐km‐long, east‐dipping, high‐angle normal fault that flanks the eastern margin of the Wassuk Range in central Nevada. Observations from two alluvial fan systems truncated by the fault yield information on the vertical slip rate and Holocene earthquake history along the range front. At the apex of the Rose Creek alluvial fan, radiocarbon dating of offset stratigraphy exposed in two fault trenches shows that multiple earthquakes resulted in 7.0 m of vertical offset along the fault since ∼9400 cal B.P. These data yield a Holocene vertical slip rate of 0.7±0.1  mm/yr. The south trench exposure records at least two faulting events since ∼9400 cal B.P., with the most recent displacement postdating ∼2810 cal B.P. The north trench exposure records an ∼1  m offset between ∼610 cal B.P. and A.D. ∼1850, a 1.3‐m minimum offset prior to ∼1460 cal B.P., and one earlier undated earthquake of a similar size. Variations in stratigraphy and limited datable material preclude a unique correlation of paleoevents between the two trenches. Approximately 25 km north, the range‐front fault has truncated and uplifted a remnant of the Penrod Canyon fan by \u3e40  m since the surface was deposited ∼113  ka, based on cosmogenic dating of two large boulders. These data allow an estimate of the minimum late Pleistocene vertical slip rate at \u3e0.3–0.4  mm/yr for the Wassuk Range fault zone

Integrating Data on Ethnicity, Geography, and Conflict: The Ethnic Power Relations Dataset Family.

ArticleThis article introduces the new Family of Ethnic Power Relations (EPR) data sets, version 2014, which is the latest in a series of data sets on ethnicity that have stimulated civil war research in the past decade. The EPR Family provides data on ethnic groups’ access to state power, their settlement patterns, links to rebel organizations, transborder ethnic kin relations, and intraethnic cleavages. The new 2014 version does not only extend the data set’s temporal coverage from 2009 to 2013, but it also offers several new features, such as a new measure of regional autonomy that is independent of national-level executive power and a new data set component coding intraethnic identities and cleavages. Moreover, for the first time, detailed documentation of the EPR data is provided through the EPR Atlas. This article presents these novelties in detail and compares the EPR Family 2014 to the most relevant alternative data sets on ethnicity.Swiss National Science FoundationSwiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC

Hard and soft probe - medium interactions in a 3D hydro+micro approach at RHIC

We utilize a 3D hybrid hydro+micro model for a comprehensive and consistent description of soft and hard particle production in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions at RHIC. In the soft sector we focus on the dynamics of (multi-)strange baryons, where a clear strangeness dependence of their collision rates and freeze-out is observed. In the hard sector we study the radiative energy loss of hard partons in a soft medium in the multiple soft scattering approximation. While the nuclear suppression factor $R_{AA}$ does not reflect the high quality of the medium description (except in a reduced systematic uncertainty in extracting the quenching power of the medium), the hydrodynamical model also allows to study different centralities and in particular the angular variation of $R_{AA}$ with respect to the reaction plane, allowing for a controlled variation of the in-medium path-length.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, Quark Matter 2006 proceedings, to appear in Journal of Physics

Hadronization of massive quark matter

We present a fast hadronization model for the constituent quark plasma (CQP) produced in relativistic heavy ion collisions at SPS. The model is based on rate equations and on an equation of state inspired by the string phenomenology. This equation of state has a confining character. We display the time evolution of the relevant physical quantities during the hadronization process and the final hadron multiplicities. The results indicate that the hadronization of CQP is fast.Comment: 12 pages, Latex, 2 EPS figures, contribution to the Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Strangeness in Quark Matter (SQM'98), Padova, Italy, 20-24 July 199

A short artificial antimicrobial peptide shows potential to prevent or treat bone infections.

Infection of bone is a severe complication due to the variety of bacteria causing it, their resistance against classical antibiotics, the formation of a biofilm and the difficulty to eradicate it. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are naturally occurring peptides and promising candidates for treatment of joint infections. This study aimed to analyze the effect of short artificial peptides derived from an optimized library regarding (1) antimicrobial effect on different bacterial species, (2) efficacy on biofilms, and (3) effect on osteoblast‑like cells. Culturing the AMP-modifications with Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus (including clinical isolates of MRSA and MSSA) and Staphylococcus epidermidis identified one candidate that was most effective against all bacteria. This AMP was also able to reduce biofilm as demonstrated by FISH and microcalorimetry. Osteoblast viability and differentiation were not negatively affected by the AMP. A cation concentration comparable to that physiologically occurring in blood had almost no negative effect on AMP activity and even with 10% serum bacterial growth was inhibited. Bacteria internalized into osteoblasts were reduced by the AMP. Taken together the results demonstrate a high antimicrobial activity of the AMP even against bacteria incorporated in a biofilm or internalized into cells without harming human osteoblasts