Arctic Sea Ice Microstructure Observations Relevant to Microwave Scattering

Sea ice microstructure characteristics relevant to ice microwave scattering were studied during SIMMS'91 field experiment in Resolute Bay in May/June 1991. Thin sections of the top 300 mm layer of first-year ice (from hummocks and melt ponds) were prepared and examined. Analysis is based mostly on qualitative observations, although statistics on bubble dimensions and geometry were obtained from digital analysis of thin section photographs. First-year ice featured mostly an oriented columnar grain structure. Both spherical and needle-shaped brine pockets were observed. In multi-year ice, a variety of grain structures and inclusion patterns were observed from the same floe. Hummock and melt pond ice are different in terms of grain structure and air bubble contents. Air bubbles in hummock ice are highly random and interconnected, especially near the surface. At lower depths, they retain simpler shapes and become oriented parallel to the dominant grain growth direction. In melt pond ice, two types of air inclusions whose typical dimensions differ by an order of magnitude were observed. Significant spatial variability of multi-year microstructure within a single floe is demonstrated.Key words: sea ice, ice microstructure, ice microwave scattering, SAR ice signatures, air bubbles in sea iceAu cours de l'étude de terrain SIMMS'91 menée dans la baie Resolute en mai/juin 1991, on a étudié les caractéristiques de la microstructure de la glace de mer pertinentes à la diffusion d'hyperfréquences par la glace. On a préparé et examiné de fines coupes transversales prélevées dans les 300 mm supérieurs de la glace de l'année et de la glace pluri-annuelle (provenant de hummocks et de mares de fonte). L'analyse s'appuie principalement sur des observations qualitatives, bien que les statistiques sur les dimensions et la géométrie des bulles aient été obtenues à partir du traitement numérique de photographies représentant de fines coupes transversales. La glace de l'année affichait principalement une structure granulaire prismée. On a observé des poches de saumure sphériques ainsi qu'aciculaires. Dans la glace pluri-annuelle, on a observé dans le même floe une diversité de structures granulaires et de schémas d'inclusion. Les hummocks et la glace des mares de fonte diffèrent quant à leur structure granulaire et au contenu des bulles d'air. Dans la glace de hummock, les bulles d'air sont distribuées au hasard et reliées entre elles, surtout près de la surface. À de plus grandes profondeurs, elles conservent des formes plus simples et s'orientent parallèlement à la direction dominante de la croissance granulaire. Dans la glace des mares de fonte, on retrouve deux types d'inclusions d'air dont les dimensions typiques diffèrent d'un ordre de grandeur. On démontre qu'il existe une importante variabilité spatiale de la microstructure de la glace pluri-annuelle à l'intérieur d'un même floe.Mots clés: glace de mer, microstructure de la glace, diffusion d’hyperfréquences par la glace, signatures de la glace obtenues avec le RALS, bulles d’air dans la glace de me

A Moment Method for the Second Order Two-point Boundary Value Problems

In this paper a Moment method based on the second, third and fourth kindChebyshev polynomials is proposed to approximate the solution of a linear twopointboundary value problem of the second order. The proposed method isflexible, easy to program and efficient. Two numerical examples are given forconciliating the results of this method, all the computation results are obtainedusing Matlab

Geospatial evaluation and bio-remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soils in arid zones

Introduction: Soil pollution directly impacts food quality and the lives of both humans and animals. The concentration of heavy metals in Egypt’s drain-side soils is rising, which is detrimental to the quality of the soil and crops. The key to reducing the detrimental effects on the ecosystem is having accurate maps of the spatial distribution of heavy metals and the subsequent use of environmentally sustainable remediation approaches. The objective of this work is to assess soil contamination utilizing spatial mapping of heavy metals, determine contamination levels using Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and calculate both the contamination severity and the potential for bioremediation in the soils surrounding the main drain of Bahr El-Baqar. Furthermore, evaluating the capacity of microorganisms (bacteria, fungi, and “Actinomycetes) to degrade heavy elements in the soil.Methodology: 146 soil sample locations were randomly selected near the Bahr El-Baqar drain to examine the degree of soil pollution Ordinary Kriging (OK), method was used to map and analyze the spatial distribution of soil contamination by seven heavy metals (Cr, Fe, Zn, Cd, Pb, As, and Ni). Modified contamination degree (mCd) and PCA were used to assess the research area’s soil pollution levels. The process involved isolating, identifying, and classifying the microorganisms present in the soil of the study area. The study findings showed that variography suggested the Stable model effectively matched pH, SOM, and Cd values. Furthermore, the exponential model proved suitable for predicting Fe, Pb and Ni, while the spherical model was appropriate for Ni, Cr, and Zn.Results: The study revealed three levels of contamination, with an extremely high degree (EHDC) affecting approximately 97.49% of the area. The EHDC exhibited average concentrations of heavy metals: 79.23 ± 17.81 for Cr, 20,014.08 ± 4545.91 for Fe, 201.31 ± 112.97 for Zn, 1.33 ± 1.37 for Cd, 40.96 ± 26.36 for Pb, 211.47 ± 13.96 for As, and 46.15 ± 9.72 for Ni. Isolation and identification of microorganisms showed a significant influence on the breakdown of both organic and inorganic pollutants in the environment. The study demonstrated exceptionally high removal efficiency for As and Cr, with a removal efficiency reached 100%, achieved by Rhizopus oryzae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Bacillus thuringiensis.Conclusion: This study has designated management zones for soil contamination by mapping soil pollutants, geo-identified them, and found potential microorganisms that could significantly reduce soil pollution levels

Performing the Egyptian revolution : origins of collective restraint action in the Midan

This research was supported by a Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland grant.In January/February 2011, the world watched with admiration the Egyptian revolution that toppled President Housni Mubarak. The demonstration in Midan al-Tahrir (Liberation Square in central Cairo), which was the nucleus of the revolution, highlighted a largely spontaneous, civil and peaceful political performance. However, this performance was temporary, contradicting subsequent bloody conflicts in post-revolutionary Egypt. This article examines the socio-political origins of the Midan performance. It argues that the demonstrators exercised collective restraint, which was temporary but necessary, in order to topple Mubarak. Building on Norbert Elias’ civilising process theory and social movements literature, it is argued that the origins of this performance are found in a collective knowledge of regime strategy and narrative, Egyptian socio-political values and existing repertoires of contention. Drawing on primary sources and semi-structured interviews, the article contends that the demonstrators exercised collective restraint to reframe regime narrative and draw public support for the revolution.PostprintPeer reviewe

Search for heavy neutral leptons in final states with electrons, muons, and hadronically decaying tau leptons in proton-proton collisions at s \sqrt{s} = 13 TeV

A search for heavy neutral leptons (HNLs) of Majorana or Dirac type using proton-proton collision data at = 13 TeV is presented. The data were collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb−1. Events with three charged leptons (electrons, muons, and hadronically decaying tau leptons) are selected, corresponding to HNL production in association with a charged lepton and decay of the HNL to two charged leptons and a standard model (SM) neutrino. The search is performed for HNL masses between 10 GeV and 1.5 TeV. No evidence for an HNL signal is observed in data. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are found for the squared coupling strength of the HNL to SM neutrinos, considering exclusive coupling of the HNL to a single SM neutrino generation, for both Majorana and Dirac HNLs. The limits exceed previously achieved experimental constraints for a wide range of HNL masses, and the limits on tau neutrino coupling scenarios with HNL masses above the W boson mass are presented for the first time

Measurement of the polarizations of prompt and non-prompt J/ψ and ψ (2S) mesons produced in pp collisions at s\sqrt{s} = 13 TeV

The polarizations of prompt and non-prompt J∕ψ and ψ(2S) mesons are measured in proton-proton collisions at √ = 13 TeV, using data samples collected by the CMS experiment in 2017 and 2018, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 103.3 fb$^{−1}$. Based on the analysis of the dimuon decay angular distributions in the helicity frame, the polar anisotropy, , is measured as a function of the transverse momentum, $_T$, of the charmonium states, in the 25–120 and 20–100 GeV ranges for the J∕ψ and ψ(2S), respectively. The non-prompt polarizations agree with predictions based on the hypothesis that, for T ≳ 25 GeV, the non-prompt J∕ψ and ψ(2S) are predominantly produced in two-body B meson decays. The prompt results clearly exclude strong transverse polarizations, even for $_T$ exceeding 30 times the J∕ψ mass, where tends to an asymptotic value around 0.3. Taken together with previous measurements, by CMS and LHCb at √ = 7 TeV, the prompt polarizations show a significant variation with $_T$, at low $_T$