Form and function in hillslope hydrology : in situ imaging and characterization of flow-relevant structures

Thanks to Elly Karle and the Engler-BunteInstitute, KIT, for the IC measurements of bromide. We are grateful to Selina Baldauf, Marcel Delock, Razije Fiden, Barbara Herbstritt, Lisei Köhn, Jonas Lanz, Francois Nyobeu, Marvin Reich and Begona Lorente Sistiaga for their support in the lab and during fieldwork, as well as Markus Morgner and Jean Francois Iffly for technical support and Britta Kattenstroth for hydrometeorological data acquisition. Laurent Pfister and Jean-Francois Iffly from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) are acknowledged for organizing the permissions for the experiments. Moreover, we thank Markus Weiler (University of Freiburg) for his strong support during the planning of the hillslope experiment and the preparation of the manuscript. This study is part of the DFG-funded CAOS project “From Catchments as Organised Systems to Models based on Dynamic Functional Units” (FOR 1598). The manuscript was substantially improved based on the critical and constructive comments of the anonymous reviewers, Christian Stamm and Alexander Zimmermann, and the editor Ross Woods during the open review process, which is highly appreciated.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

State Ownership in the Russian Economy. Part 1. Its Magnitude And Sectoral Distribution

This article analyzes the extent and sectoral distribution of state ownership in the Russian economy. The different legal forms of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Russia are described. Of-ficial data on the evolution of the size of the state sector is provided, where the size is measured by the number of SOEs, their share in employment, fixed assets, investment and industrial production. Shortcomings of the official ownership classification are highlighted. Next, the sectoral distribution of SOEs and the degree of their internationalization is described. Finally, data on the SOEs that are listed on the stock market is presented. It gives a picture of a much stronger involvement of the government in medium and large sized companies than what can be inferred from the official data. In a second part (to be published in the next issue of this journal) the governance problems and performance effects of state ownership are discussed.State-owned enterprises, state ownership, nationalization, corporate governance, state corporation, Russia

Form and function in hillslope hydrology : Characterization of subsurface ow based on response observations

Acknowledgements. We are grateful to Marcel Delock, Lisei Köhn, and Marvin Reich for their support during fieldwork, as well as Markus Morgner and Jean Francois Iffly for technical support, Britta Kattenstroth for hydrometeorological data acquisition and isotope sampling, and Barbara Herbstritt and Begoña Lorente Sistiaga for laboratory work. Laurent Pfister and Jean-Francois Iffly from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) are acknowledged for organizing the permissions for the experiments and providing discharge data for Weierbach 1 and Colpach. We also want to thank Frauke K. Barthold and the two anonymous reviewers, whose thorough remarks greatly helped to improve the manuscript. This study is part of DFG-funded CAOS project “From Catchments as Organised Systems to Models based on Dynamic Functional Units” (FOR 1598). The article processing charges for this open-access publication were covered by a Research Centre of the Helmholtz Association.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

State Ownership in the Russian Economy. Part 2. Governance Problems and Performance Effects

This article discusses the objectives and challenges for corporate governance of SOEs in Russia, and provides an international perspective of the performance of SOEs as compared to privately owned companies. Recent trends in the policy and management of state property are described. The problems of corporate governance in Russia are described in an agency perspective, and survey evidence on corporate governance and transparency of Russian SOEs is provided. Particular attention is given to the legal construction of the state corporation. The final section on the performance effects of state ownership summarizes the key contributions in the international economic literature in this field.state-owned enterprises, state ownership, nationalization, corporate governance, state corporation, Russia

The promising future of a robust cosmological neutrino mass measurement

We forecast the sensitivity of thirty-five different combinations of future Cosmic Microwave Background and Large Scale Structure data sets to cosmological parameters and to the total neutrino mass. We work under conservative assumptions accounting for uncertainties in the modelling of systematics. In particular, for galaxy redshift surveys, we remove the information coming from non-linear scales. We use Bayesian parameter extraction from mock likelihoods to avoid Fisher matrix uncertainties. Our grid of results allows for a direct comparison between the sensitivity of different data sets. We find that future surveys will measure the neutrino mass with high significance and will not be substantially affected by potential parameter degeneracies between neutrino masses, the density of relativistic relics, and a possible time-varying equation of state of Dark Energy.Comment: 27 pages, 4 figures, 8 tables. v2: updated Euclid sensitivity settings, matches published versio

Sub-kHz lasing of a CaF_2 Whispering Gallery Mode Resonator Stabilized Fiber Ring Laser

We utilize a high quality calcium fluoride whispering-gallery-mode resonator to stabilize a simple erbium doped fiber ring laser with an emission frequency of 196 THz (wavelenght 1530 nm) to a linewidth below 650 Hz. This corresponds to a relative stability of 3.3 x 10^(-12) over 16 \mus. In order to characterize the linewidth we use two identical self-built lasers and a commercial laser to determine the individual lasing linewidth via the three-cornered hat method.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Visualizing Information on a Sphere

We describe a method for the visualization of information units on spherical domains which is employed in the banking industry for risk analysis, stock prediction and other tasks. The system is based on a quantification of the similarity of related objects that governs the parameters of a mass-spring system. Unlike existing approaches we initialize all information units onto the inner surface of two concentric spheres and attach them with springs to the outer sphere. Since the spring stiffnesses correspond to the computed similarity measures, the system converges into an energy minimum which reveals multidimensional relations and adjacencies in terms of spatial neighborhoods. Depending on the application scenario our approach supports different topological arrangements of related objects. In order to cope with large data sets we propose a blobby clustering mechanism that enables encapsulation of similar objects by implicit shapes. In addition, we implemented various interaction techniques allowing semantic analysis of the underlying data sets. Our prototype system IVORY is written in JAVA, and its versatility is illustrated by an example from financial service providers

Defining agronomic practices for forage corn production in Saskatchewan

Non-Peer ReviewedForage corn may be an economical and high-quality alternative for winter feeding in Saskatchewan, but the cost of corn production is high compared to other forage crops. To maximize the economic potential of forage corn for feeding, input costs, such as seed and fertilizer, need to be minimized. The existing recommendations for nitrogen application rate and seeding rate for forage corn are based on grain corn production, resulting in relatively high recommended nitrogen application rates. The purpose of this project was to develop and refine seeding and fertility recommendations for corn silage production and to evaluate the cost of production and feed quality of corn silage grown in Saskatchewan. The 3-year study, including the 2016, 2017 and 2018 growing seasons, was located at three short-season sites (Lanigan, Melfort, and Scott) and three long-season sites (Yorkton, Redvers, and Outlook). The hybrids grown at each site were selected based on their corn heat unit rating. At each site, two different seed brands were planted at three target seeding rates with three nitrogen application rates. The total biomass yield was individually measured for each plot and subsamples were collected for forage quality analysis. Based on Year 2 results, there were significant differences in plant populations and biomass yields among the sites and treatments. An economic analysis was conducted to determine if any yield advantage from higher nitrogen and seeding rates are worth the added cost of these inputs