6,418 research outputs found
Multisensor monitoring of deforestation in the Guinea Highlands of West Africa
Multiple remote sensing systems were used to assess deforestation in the Guinea Highlands (Fouta Djallon) of West Africa. Sensor systems included: (1) historical (1953) and current (1989) aerial mapping photography; (2) current large-scale, small format (35mm) aerial photography; (3) current aerial video imagery; and (4) historical (1973) and recent (1985) LANDSAT MSS. Photographic and video data were manually interpreted and incorporated in a vector-based geographic information system (GIS). LANDSAT data were digitally classified. General results showed an increase in permanent and shifting agriculture over the past 35 years. This finding is consistent with hypothesized strategies to increase agricultural production through a shortening of the fallow period in areas of shifting cultivation. However, results also show that the total area of both permanent and shifting agriculture had expanded at the expense of natural vegetation and an increase in erosion. Although sequential LANDSAT MSS cannot be used in this region to accurately map land over, the location, direction and magnitude of changes can be detected in relative terms. Historical and current aerial photography can be used to map agricultural land use changes with some accuracy. Video imagery is useful as ancillary data for mapping vegetation. The most prudent approach to mapping deforestation would incorporate a multistage approach based on these sensors
A tool for simulating and communicating uncertainty when modelling species distributions under future climates
Tools for exploring and communicating the impact of uncertainty on spatial prediction are urgently needed, particularly when projecting species distributions to future conditions.
We provide a tool for simulating uncertainty, focusing on uncertainty due to data quality. We illustrate the use of the tool using a Tasmanian endemic species as a case study. Our simulations provide probabilistic, spatially explicit illustrations of the impact of uncertainty on model projections. We also illustrate differences in model projections using six different global climate models and two contrasting emissions scenarios.
Our case study results illustrate how different sources of uncertainty have different impacts on model output and how the geographic distribution of uncertainty can vary.
Synthesis and applications: We provide a conceptual framework for understanding sources of uncertainty based on a review of potential sources of uncertainty in species distribution modelling; a tool for simulating uncertainty in species distribution models; and protocols for dealing with uncertainty due to climate models and emissions scenarios. Our tool provides a step forward in understanding and communicating the impacts of uncertainty on species distribution models under future climates which will be particularly helpful for informing discussions between researchers, policy makers, and conservation practitioners
Results for the response function determination of the Compact Neutron Spectrometer
The Compact Neutron Spectrometer (CNS) is a Joint European Torus (JET)
Enhancement Project, designed for fusion diagnostics in different plasma
scenarios. The CNS is based on a liquid scintillator (BC501A) which allows good
discrimination between neutron and gamma radiation. Neutron spectrometry with a
BC501A spectrometer requires the use of a reliable, fully characterized
detector. The determination of the response matrix was carried out at the Ion
Accelerator Facility (PIAF) of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB).
This facility provides several monoenergetic beams (2.5, 8, 10, 12 and 14 MeV)
and a 'white field'(Emax ~17 MeV), which allows for a full characterization of
the spectrometer in the region of interest (from ~1.5 MeV to ~17 MeV. The
energy of the incoming neutrons was determined by the time of flight method
(TOF), with time resolution in the order of 1 ns. To check the response matrix,
the measured pulse height spectra were unfolded with the code MAXED and the
resulting energy distributions were compared with those obtained from TOF. The
CNS project required modification of the PTB BC501A spectrometer design, to
replace an analog data acquisition system (NIM modules) with a digital system
developed by the 'Ente per le Nuove tecnologie, l'Energia e l'Ambiente' (ENEA).
Results for the new digital system were evaluated using new software developed
specifically for this project.Comment: Proceedings of FNDA 201
Strongly Non-Equilibrium Bose-Einstein Condensation in a Trapped Gas
We present a qualitative (and quantitative, at the level of estimates)
analysis of the ordering kinetics in a strongly non-equilibrium state of a
weakly interacting Bose gas, trapped with an external potential. At certain
conditions, the ordering process is predicted to be even more rich than in the
homogeneous case. Like in the homogeneous case, the most characteristic feature
of the full-scale non-equilibrium process is the formation of superfluid
turbulence.Comment: 4 pages, revtex, no figures. Submitted to PR
Uptake of hepatitis C specialist services and treatment following diagnosis by dried blood spot in Scotland
Background:
Dried blood spot (DBS) testing for hepatitis C (HCV) was introduced to Scotland in 2009. This minimally invasive specimen provides an alternative to venipuncture and can overcome barriers to testing in people who inject drugs (PWID).
Objectives:
The objective of this study was to determine rates and predictors of: exposure to HCV, attendance at specialist clinics and anti-viral treatment initiation among the DBS tested population in Scotland.
Study design:
DBS testing records were deterministically linked to the Scottish HCV Clinical database prior to logistic regression analysis.
Results:
In the first two years of usage in Scotland, 1322 individuals were tested by DBS of which 476 were found to have an active HCV infection. Linkage analysis showed that 32% had attended a specialist clinic within 12 months of their specimen collection date and 18% had begun anti-viral therapy within 18 months of their specimen collection date. A significantly reduced likelihood of attendance at a specialist clinic was evident amongst younger individuals (<35 years), those of unknown ethnic origin and those not reporting injecting drug use as a risk factor.
Conclusion:
We conclude that DBS testing in non-clinical settings has the potential to increase diagnosis and, with sufficient support, treatment of HCV infection among PWID
The prevalence and impact of thrombocytopenia, anaemia and leucopenia on sustained virological response in patients receiving hepatitis C therapy: evidence from a large ‘real world’ cohort
Damped Bogoliubov excitations of a condensate interacting with a static thermal cloud
We calculate the damping of condensate collective excitations at finite
temperatures arising from the lack of equilibrium between the condensate and
thermal atoms. We neglect the non-condensate dynamics by fixing the thermal
cloud in static equilibrium. We derive a set of generalized Bogoliubov
equations for finite temperatures that contain an explicit damping term due to
collisional exchange of atoms between the two components. We have numerically
solved these Bogoliubov equations to obtain the temperature dependence of the
damping of the condensate modes in a harmonic trap. We compare these results
with our recent work based on the Thomas-Fermi approximation.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures included. Submitted to PR
Gyroscopic motion of superfluid trapped atomic condensates
The gyroscopic motion of a trapped Bose gas containing a vortex is studied.
We model the system as a classical top, as a superposition of coherent
hydrodynamic states, by solution of the Bogoliubov equations, and by
integration of the time-dependent Gross-Pitaevskii equation. The frequency
spectrum of Bogoliubov excitations, including quantum frequency shifts, is
calculated and the quantal precession frequency is found to be consistent with
experimental results, though a small discrepancy exists. The superfluid
precession is found to be well described by the classical and hydrodynamic
models. However the frequency shifts and helical oscillations associated with
vortex bending and twisting require a quantal treatment. In gyroscopic
precession, the vortex excitation modes are the dominant features
giving a vortex kink or bend, while the is found to be the dominant
Kelvin wave associated with vortex twisting.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl
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